


Vagabond

by poetofblaze



Category: She-Ra and the Princesses of Power (2018)
Genre: Abuse, Abuse of Authority, Alternate Universe, Bounty, Child Abuse, Childhood Trauma, Emotional Manipulation, Emotional/Psychological Abuse, F/F, Massacre, On the Run, Psychological Trauma, Rape, Revenge, Survival, Trauma, Violence, War, War Crimes
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-06-17
Updated: 2020-06-29
Packaged: 2021-03-04 02:22:12
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death, Rape/Non-Con
Chapters: 8
Words: 37,350
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24766129
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/poetofblaze/pseuds/poetofblaze
Summary: After a fresh incident, Catra finds herself wanting out of the Horde and on her own. It isn't long before Etheria finds out Catra is no longer with the Horde and becomes a wanted fugitive for her crimes against the planet. Being alone she has nowhere to run and nowhere to call home. Both the Horde and the Rebellion are after her skin and want to see her dead. In a last ditch effort, she confides in She-Ra to see if there is a chance she can survive.
Relationships: Adora/Catra (She-Ra), Catra/Shadow Weaver | Light Spinner (She-Ra)
Comments: 19
Kudos: 100





	1. Twisted Shadows

**Author's Note:**

> CONTENT WARNING: 
> 
> This chapter contains highly graphic depictions of massacre of innocent civilians as well as an incredibly graphic depiction of rape. 
> 
> This may be sensitive for some readers. If at anytime you feel you cannot withstand to read it, put it down and step away.

Dusty orange clouds were cast over the sky above, blocking out the sun and it's warmth from the world below. The only breeze that ever blew through the Fright Zone was chilly and bitter, picking up the tiny particles of sand and dust that polluted the ground and sending them scattering over the metal infrastructure that made up the entire Horde base. Not a single plant grew in this part of Etheria and water was scarce. Even from the highest vantage point and enhanced vision, Catra still wasn't able spot either of those things from where she was perched to as far as the horizon. The Fright Zone lacked all basic things that would make even the ugliest biome beautiful. It was nothing more than a rotting, desolate waste-land void of all living things besides the suffering workers that kept it alive and the tyrants who relaxed on the broken backs of their empire. Catra knew that at this point, she would never be one of those on top. This place would be the death of her physically as it had already killed her mentally, more than once. Her spirit had become a dead horse beaten into a fine pulp and later strained into a refreshing drink for Shadow Weaver to enjoy. 

Catra looked down to the world below her, the wind battering her tanned, freckled skin and whipping her brown mane of hair back behind her. She sat cross-legged on the railing that was still barely hanging onto the risen platform she's always gone to whenever she needed to escape from real-life and process through her emotions. This was the first time she had ever truly considered leaving the Horde. A part of her had always wished she went with Adora when she left, being by the defected Force Captain's side once more. The Horde was her home. She couldn't just leave it behind, not after everything she had gone through to even get to where she is now. Everyday, Catra did her best to remind herself that Adora leaving was the best thing to happen to her. She worked her way up to being favorable in Hordak's eyes and was even granted a promotion under his own command, something that would have never happened if her childhood friend was still around. Still, ice clung to her heavy heart and Catra didn't understand why. It felt as if Adora took a part of her heard - a very large part - when she left to join the Rebellion. Looking down at the shiny yellow and green Force Captain badge that was pinned onto her maroon uniform, Catra ran her thumb over it back and forth for a few seconds before unfastening it's pin and chucking it onto the world below. Within seconds, the small piece of metal was too far down for her to be able to see anymore. She wasn't sure if it had hit the ground or got caught on a rusting building and it didn't matter to her either way. That part of her life was now over. 

The orange sky slowly started to darken overhead, telling Catra that the sun would soon be setting. Sunsets and sunrises didn't exist in the Horde, only night and day. The cloud cover hid the sky from the First Zone for as long as Catra could remember and probably for generations before her. If the clouds weren't a russet orange, they were a dark, navy blue and grey. The transition from day to night never seemed to last long enough for Catra to enjoy it and tonight was no different. With a hefty sigh, she hung her head low, her gloved hands gripping the railing so tight that her knuckles turned white. She had never felt so broken, so alone. The events of the day stuck in her brain like a bad tattoo, forever there taunting her over and over with no chance of letting up. Sure, overtime she would become used to the mental torture, but that didn't make it go away. Ignoring it never fixed anything as she learned. She couldn't fix anything it seemed. She closed her eyes, allowing herself to take it all in. 

Earlier, Catra had been in charge of a mission to overthrow and take over Seaworthy. Despite finding herself to be incredibly sea-sick, spilling the contents of her stomach out over the sides of her battleship and down its metal sides, the mission was going through fairly well. Everyone had the spirit they needed in order to succeed. The townsmen of Seaworthy were taken completely by surprise and didn't even realize what had hit them due to Catra's ingenious idea to disguise the battleships as normal, everyday ships that sailors would use to travel all of Etheria. By the time they noticed, it was already too late. Catra had sent out troops to dismantle the town and even more to set fire to all of the ships docked at port, sending them to their flame-filled fate. The amount of causalities seen here were unlike anything the Horde had ever done before. Hundreds upon hundreds died on the flaming ships alone, either from breathing in the smoke, being burned alive, or caught as the ship went down. Many were ruthlessly slaughtered at the hands of the soldiers that raided the camps. With Princess Entrapta's new ray-guns, it became almost too easy for the Horde to snipe the townsmen. Fires lit far more than the ships. They were burning down the village. The second battalion Catra had ordered to round up townsmen had done so quickly the moment the smaller troops set flame to the wooden frames of the buildings and their breezy, cloth-roofs. People fled the scene, but as Seaworthy was a port city, there was only one way to travel by foot and those foolish enough to try to escape were soon shot by the first battalion who blocked them off from accessing the mainland and the rest of Salineas. The people the second battalion had rounded up were to be either executed on the spot or taken prisoner within the anchor warehouse the Horde raided. Blood stained the cobblestone streets, still pouring out from the bodies of the innocent as they laid there dying. 

Catra felt like she was on top of the world. Everything wasn't just going to plan, but it was going beautifully as well. She scoured the streets, the drying blood deepening into various shades of brown and dripping in between the cracks and crevices of the stone surface. A sweet, sickening-smell filled her nostrils and polluted the air, tinged with the slightest metallic touch. Seeing the bodies line the side of the road had little to no effect on her, even the ones who were still alive and writhing in pain. She didn't even care to stop and put their miserable lives out of their suffering, but would instead walk on by as if they had already escaped into whatever afterlife awaited them. Ray gun in hand, she continued to walk the bloodied streets. The liquid of life sticking to the bottoms of her feet with each step. A particular body off in the distance had caught her attention. Underneath the blood and the dirt that coated it was what appeared to be the familiar dark skin and lavish aqua and gold uniform of Princess Mermista laying face-down in the ruins of a demolished cottage. As she started to make her way over, shots fired from from the right toward her. Dodging the flashing green lights, she dived to take cover behind the brick wall of a building that was burned to the ground. Eyeing the terrain carefully, she watched as a purple Sea Elf appeared from behind a smoldering fire, cautiously looking around for the Force Captain. In their hands was a Horde ray gun, reminding Catra that she would have some fatalities herself. Unconcerned, she steadily pointed her own weapon at the elf, firing eight-rounds into their lean, scaled body. So very different from the movies, the orange body fell directly to the ground as heavy as a bag of sand, completely lifeless and motionless. Smirking to herself, Catra reappeared from behind her safety and made her way out to the street. Hot, sticky blood poured out from all eight of the wounds she made on the insurgent, coating her feet. 

"What a shame," she sighed, shaking her head and turning away. "And what an idiot." 

Catra felt that anyone who thought they could handle finishing off a Force Captain, let alone her of all people, were almost asking to be killed. With each body she had took the life from that day, she kept a mental note. They weren't casualties of war in her mind. They deserved it. Catra alone had taken out fifty-eight individuals without even a scratch on her own freckled skin. She didn't see herself as a killer, but rather simply doing them a favor. It wasn't murder, it was suicide. All she was doing was helping them out. 

She started to make her way back over toward Mermista's lifeless body, adrenaline pumping through her veins to see the light in the sea princess's- or as she liked to call herself, the "Sea-Ra" - eyes faded and glazed over into an eternal abyss with her own eyes. Mermista was powerful, just like any of the other princesses and was the one Catra wouldn't have minded befriending. It was too late for that now. The closer she got, the easier it was to make out Mermista's body. A purr began to arise in her throat, excitement flowing through her. At her feet lay one princess out of more to come. She gripped Mermista's blue hair with her toes, standing in a pool of the princess's blood and smearing the blood of her people onto the side of her once beautiful face. She pulled Mermista's face from the ground, revealing thin gills along the neck, long pointy ears, and a face lacking a nose bridge. Catra's eyes stretched wide open and she let go of hair, stepping away from the body. It was just another sea-elf. Gritting her teeth, she spit a large wad of saliva onto the elf's body and kicked her head furiously, letting out a shriek of frustration before storming off. Even if she didn't get Mermista, she at least had the comfort in knowing that Seaworthy was now under her reign. Horde Law would be implemented and those captured would soon become nothing more than disposable slaves working under sick regime. Power flowed through her fingertips and into the crisp, salty air, empowering her. 

"Catra-" a voice full of static called. "Catra! Pick up! We nee-" the voice broke off. 

"-you."

Unhinging the radio off of her belt, she pressed the audio button down to speak.

"Lonnie? What's going on?" She asked, narrowing her eyes as she began to scan the horizon. She couldn't see anything around her that would alert her to any issues. She couldn't even see many Horde soldiers from where she stood. Lonnie had been assigned to the first battalion that formed a blockade between Seaworthy and the path to Salineas. It wasn't normal for her to report issues to Catra as normally Lonnie was more than capable of protecting herself and getting her groups out of messy situations.

"Ca-ra," Lonnie said, her voice still glitching from the poor communication between their radios. "Our -ces are des-ed... W- -eed -backup." 

Catra smacked the device a few times with her hand, trying to get it to connect to no avail. Lonnie was still speaking, but it was too garbled for Catra to make any words out of it. All she knew was that whatever had happened, her forced at the border was needing more assistance. The radio gave out on her, dying in her hands. Sinking her claws into the useless grey piece of technology, she threw it as hard as she could at the side of a crumbling concrete wall with a grunt. The radio shattered on the impact, breaking apart into tiny plastic pieces and falling to the dusty ground below. Cursing under her breath, she made a mad-dash back to the main port where the Horde had came through and hopped onto a smoking skiff. Kicking the engine box a few times, the skiff sputtered into gear and leviated unsteadily in the air just enough for her to be able to get it to move. As Catra began to make her way to the Seaworthy border, she was able to see the full effects of the damage her troops had caused. It seemed as though there wasn't a single patch of cobblestone road that was left untouched by the blood of the townsfolk, their dead bodies, damage from the fire, or of course the spray painted symbols left behind from the Horde soldiers as they made their way through slaughtering every breathing inhabitant. Seeing the bodies of a few children made her stomach turn, but not enough for her to stop what she was doing. It wasn't even enough to stop her from taking pleasure. For once, she would be awarded. For once, she won and would come out on top. This mission was hers and hers alone. Flying over Seaworthy on her damaged skiff gave her enough time to briefly fantasize about the way Hordak would praise her when she would return. The taste of victory was sweeter than the smell of the dead bodies that filled the street and was strong on her lips. She couldn't wait. 

The border quickly came into view. The crowd of people there was much larger than the battalions combined and every ounce of terrain was nothing but a viscous bloodbath still in making. The closer that Catra had gotten, the more reality started to reveal its ugly head. The reason so many Horde soldiers disappeared was to fight the oncoming waves of insurgents as they pummeled into the first battalion from the Salineas side. They were heavily armored and protected. In the distance, Catra could make out the shapes of Princess Mermista, Princess Glimmer, archer Bow, and of course- Adora completely transformed into the legendary She-Ra. Bringing her skiff to a sudden halt, her eyes searched the crowd for Lonnie and Rogelio. It was already too late for her to do much of anything else and with her radio destroyed, there was no way for her to call a retreat or to message the Fright Zone for more troops. Her mission had failed, but until Adora caught sight of her with her glowing blue eyes. The legendary warrior pointed her large, blue sword as Catra and a bright light began to beam out from it, hitting the bottom of Catra's skiff and sending her and the vehicle flying. Unable to keep her footing, Catra started to slip off of the skit and fell tot he world below, landing heavy on her shoulder. Wincing in pain, she felt hands tug at her arms.

"Come on, Catra. We need to go. This is a lost cause," Lonnie huffed, pulling Catra back up to her feet with the help of Rogelio who simply grunted and groaned in a language Catra didn't understand. Her collarbone ached with excruciating pain, but she pushed through it, gripping her scrapped shoulder as she ran back toward the ships. The port side of Seaworthy was nearly empty with the exception of a few Horde soldiers waiting for everyone's return. As the three came up to the ports, the soldiers standing guard caught onto Catra's sense of urgency quickly. 

"Rebel insurgents took over the boarder. Our radios have lost all communication. We lost," Catra hissed through short, labored breaths. Lonnie kept her arm around the Force Captain, doing her best to hold her up. Catra's knees felt weak and she had to do all she could to prevent herself from falling over. The Horde soldier nodded and motioned for the group to follow, leading them inside the largest battleship the Horde had. They quickly made their way through the ship, dodging various soldiers and sailors as they ran. The sound of roaring engines caused Catra's head to pound, but there was no time for her to stop and mope. She needed to move. She could tell she was still above the water from the quick glances she took through the small, circular windows that lined the walls of the ship, but the water was now close enough for her to know that they were getting close to being underwater. The Horde soldier they had been following pressed a large red button and started to undo and open a hatch, revealing a secret entrance to a small submarine they had for when escapes like this needed to be made. Catra scrambling in behind Lonnie and Rogelio, but not without throwing up once more before climbing down the narrow hatch. Once inside, everything went to black. 

When Catra had woken up, she found herself looking around a room in the Fright Zone confusingly. A large, reddish-black stone stood sparkling and crackling with red bursts of electricity before her. A lump began to rise in her throat as she realized where she was. She tried to swallow it down to no avail. Before long, Catra noticed she was lying down on a cot, completely and entirely restrained. All she was able to do was move her head, neck, and tail in limited fashion. A sickening feeling began to form in her stomach. She had failed. Again. Shadow Weaver wasn't having it, especially after catching Catra violating some of the most basic rules the Horde had in place. She told her she would give her one chance to save her skin to make up for such a childish, foolish, and disgusting mistake. Failing, however, warranted the punishment Shadow Weaver had seemed all too eager to hand out. She wasn't entirely sure what would happen to her, but given the nature of her own violation, she assumed it would be similar to that. The hardest part for Catra was knowing that all of this went under Hordak's nose, completely oblivious to the abuse she had put her through her entire life. 

She wasn't sure how long she had laid there on the cot, completely restrained. She found herself drifting in and out of consciousness as the laid there. She wasn't in the submarine anymore, the fear she had laying there was enough for her to black out repeatedly. Eventually, Shadow Weaver did emerge into the room, the Black Garnet in the room started to glow a soft red glow as it reacted with the small piece of stone on the sorceress's mask. Catra did her best to follow Shadow Weaver's movements as the older woman paced around the room, talking to herself. Or was she talking to Catra? She could't tell at this point, nor did it matter. Shadow Weaver made her way over to Catra's cot, gripping her cold grey hands around her ankles, causing Catra's hackles to rise. The panic began to increase and she was desperate to escape. However, she was bound too tightly that her attempts were futile and worthless, simply draining the energy she was losing. She began to dry-heave, having nothing left in her stomach. As her body began to spasm an convulse, pain started to sear through her diaphragm due to the position she was forced into. Her head slammed against the cot a few times in the process. The stone on Shadow Weaver's mask began to glow, causing the light from the Black Garnet to intensify. A sparking red shroud cloaked over Shadow Weaver, quickly spreading to Catra's body. Her skin began to prickle and burn with the paralyzing sensation. All she could do was open her mouth and scream. Strengthening her powers even more, the sorceress forced Catra's mouth shut and she was no longer able to open it. 

"Silence, Force Captain," Her voice boomed. There was a hint of mischief in her tone, telling Catra that whatever Shadow Weaver was about to do, she was going to enjoy it. "Your screams are unnecessary and will not be heard here. The more you try to resist, the longer this will go and we don't want that, do we?" She pressed, easing up on the magic to allow Catra to move her head and jaw once more. She silently nodded, feeling a tightening pressure in her chest. She opened her mouth to gasp for air. All Shadow Weaver did was respond with sinister, sickening laugh. "It's a shame that you and your disgusting schematics were discovered, but it's even more of a shame that you couldn't even capture a civilian village with the best artillery and troops. In fact, you got everyone but yourself and seven others killed. How does that make you feel, Force Captain?"

Her words were harsh and cold, sending chills down Catra's spine. The way in which Shadow Weaver said the words "Force Captain" made her stomach flip upside and she dry heaved once again, this time more violently than the last. The straights on her wrists pulled on her shoulders as her body convulsed, causing pain to shoot from her joints and her chest. Cold hands suddenly gripped Catra's chin hard enough to bruise her skin. Shadow Weaver's long, pointed fingers dug into her skin as she stared directly into Catra's eyes, forcing her to keep the eye contract no matter how badly the Force Captain wanted to break away. Closing her eyelids did nothing to help. If anything, all it did was make the sorceress even more upset and violent. 

"You know very well that I can see you where ever it is that you go," Shadow Weaver started, turning Catra's head in her hands as if she was inspecting it. Catra winced, flashing her white fangs under her lips. Shadow Weaver laughed once more. "And thus, I can see what it is that you do. If it's any comfort, Adora had to go through this once as well. She was having... disgusting thoughts and was acting out on them. I didn't give her the chance to prove herself, unlike you, Catra." Catra narrowed her eyes, trying to figure out why Shadow Weaver would give her a second chance. It occurred to her it was because she knew that if she failed, Catra would feel like she deserved the punishment she was about to receive, to further enforce the idea that she was a failure. Her ears flattened back against her head as far as the cot would allow. 

"S-she d-did?" Catra croaked, her throat beginning to burn from speaking. Shadow Weaver nodded, her laugh only growing louder as her hands started to leave her face and trail down to the collar on her uniform. Using her own sharp, clawed fingers, Shadow Weaver began to slowly cut through the fabric all the way down to Catra's pubic area before slicing a finger down each leg. She peeled her uniform away from her body much like the way a taxidermist would skin the animal in front of them. In only her sports bra and underwear, Catra had never felt so exposed, so vulnerable in her life. Shadow Weaver slowly dragged her fingers up along Catra's body and nodded.

"Mmhmm," she started, cocking her head to the side. Her floating black hair seemed to grow in size, but Catra wasn't sure if that was just her mind playing tricks on her. She swallowed hard, doing her best to remove that lump. Instead, a ball of ice began to form deep within her body as adrenaline started to flood through her veins, keeping her awake and alert. "She was younger than you are, but not by much. Maybe a year. And you wouldn't believe the things she was pleasuring herself to. It was completely and entire unacceptable! But the worst part of it, was the very thing she enjoyed fantasizing about and touching herself to. For granted, she took her punishment much better than you seem to be. Would you like to know what that... thing... was, Catra?" She asked, her grey hand now gently caressing her right breast. Catra simply stared at the sorceress, wondering how someone so sick could be second-in-command. She knew that if she said no, she was going to hear it anyway. Reluctantly, Catra nodded, closing her eyes. In an instant, Shadow Weaver dug her nails into her soft flesh, causing her yipe. She wasn't allowed to look away. 

"That... thing, was you."

Shadow Weaver's voice seemed to echo through the Black Garnet's chamber and into Catra's mind. So many thoughts came flashing before eyes and she didn't know how to comprehend any of it. Thoughts such as finding out that Adora was just as sexually attracted to her as Catra was to her, to the way in which Shadow Weaver not only called Catra a "thing", but the way she said it was well. The way she had not only called their actions disgusting, but the way in which she also called Catra disgusting. The way she wanted Catra to fail to further prove here point on why Catra deserved the treatment that was coming. Her heart began to race and she wanted to cry. She had to do everything she could to hold back the tears. Shadow Weaver's hand continued to caress her breast, growing more and more rough with each passing squeeze. Catra bared her teeth in pain, doing her best to stay silent. Did Adora really think of her in such a way? 

"But, I had to show her that those thoughts aren't allowed in the Horde and the actions... oh, the actions. They're absolutely horrendous and I had to stop her from making such a shameful mistake again," she went on. Catra wasn't even aware that she had still been talking up until that point, missing out on a part of her speech. Something inside of her was glad she was able to zone out, even if it was for a little bit. "I just... cannot believe she had those feelings for such a vile and disgusting creature like you. Just know, Catra, that what I'm about to do isn't because I love or care about you. It isn't because I want to prevent you from making the same mistake. It's because I want you to realize and feel just how low of a dirty and decrepit life you truly are, for not only touching yourself in such a sexually perverted manner, but for doing so to your own twisted fantasies of Adora. She isn't here to save you."

Catra's chest began to heave as she struggled to breathe, her own body choking her. Shadow Weaver cut through the fabric of her bra and underwear, cold hands exploring every inch of her body. Catra could do nothing but lay there and do her best to zone out, to keep her tears in, to stay silent. She felt disgusting and horrifically dirty like Shadow Weaver wanted, not just for the way in which the sorceress was molesting her, but for the way in which she would think about Adora at night. Even though the two hadn't spoken for some time and were now enemies, Catra could never truly push those feelings aside or ignore them. She wanted Adora and she couldn't deny it no matter how hard she tried. She wanted to feel the sensation of her lips against her own, to taste the inside of her mouth, to know how her body looked when she was undressed and how soft her skin must feel. Catra wanted that so badly, she needed it. She craved for the taste of her former friend's sex, a taste she had never had the opportunity to experience. But if it was anything like her own, she would gladly eat her out for as long as she wanted. There was one time, however, where Adora willingly and happily took away the frustrations of one of Catra's more intense heats. She didn't like being the only one on the receiving end, but at the time, she figured it was just Adora trying to be a nice friend and help her out. She didn't realize it was because she apparently had the same craving as she. 

As Catra watched Shadow Weaver slip two icy fingers into her core, she cringed, biting down on her lower lip. Everything started to feel dizzy and blurry. Her fingers fumbled around inside trying to find her sweet spot that only one other person had ever been able to find beside herself. She wanted it to stop. It hurt. The feeling of Shadow Weaver's fingers force themselves into her slit, which was dry and tight, felt like she was being ripped open and torn apart. It burned and tears began to form in her eyes. She wanted to beg her to stop, but she knew that would do nothing. Her fingers began to pump themselves in and out, causing Catra to hiss out in pain and discomfort. Her hackles started to rise, and she pulled her lips back into a snarl. Yet, she remained silent enough for Shadow Weaver to continue to go easy on her. She lost track of time and how long Shadow Weaver had been doing her best to masturbate Catra by the time her body started giving in. Her sex started to feel hot and wet and the pain began to ebb away. She hated the way in which the sensation almost felt... good. As if it had a mind of its own, her hips began to buck and rock against Shadow Weaver's fingers, wanting more. Hot tears began to stream down her cheeks, her eyes stinging every time she blinked. The wetter Catra got, the faster the old sorceress went. Her palm rested on Catra's engorged clit, massaging it each time she moved. She was now sweating and panting, her face stained with the tears she shed. 

This went on for what felt like forever. Every time Catra would feel herself nearing climax, Shadow Weaver would stop, letting her calm down before going about her punishment. Every time she did this, the more painful her desire to finish would become. She wanted it to be over, but she knew that the only way Shadow Weaver would ever let her finish would be if she were to beg. Catra wasn't about to do that anytime soon. She refused to humilate herself to such a low standard... but her body couldn't take it. She was tiring out too easily, periodically blacking out during the entire ordeal. The lump in her throat felt as if it was growing bigger and bigger with each passing second. 

"P-please..." She begged, her entire face now drenched in her tears. Her face felt hot from the humiliation. "Please let me finish.."

Shadow Weaver continued on with her actions, paying no mind to Catra's pleas. She was now sobbing, choking on her own saliva, face red and burning. 

Eventually, her body gave in and she trembled, arching her back. A high-pitched shriek nearly escaped from her mouth, much like it almost always did when she would finish. Shadow Weaver kept her fingers inside her core until she rode out the orgasm. The tears only poured down her face even harder. Her punishment didn't end there, and almost instantly her fingers were in her mouth for her to lick off and in moments, the sorceress was straddling her soaking wet head and gripping Catra's hair roughly, forcing her nose into her own snatch. Unbeknownst to Shadow Weaver, Catra's tongue was lined with dozens of tiny, pointed barbs that ripped across her flesh like sandpaper, making the ordeal incredibly painful. Thankfully, this didn't last very long. 

She was disgusting and dirty. 

Shivers went up Catra's spine as she realized that the sun had already set and it was now dark outside. Her eyes had adjusted to the dim lighting and her joints had all grown stiff from sitting perched on the railing for so long. Her own sex still ached from earlier as did her shoulder. She slowly began to break free from her mold, her knees both popping with relief. Swallowing down her fears, she started to slink her way back into the barracks and grabbed the same old blue blanket she and Adora shared growing up together as well as a knapsack, a stun baton, bandages, two bottles of water, grey ration bars stolen from the kitchen, a shank, a pair of sandals, a red Horde-issued bandanna and playing cards, and finally a canvas cloak. Stuffing the items into the knapsack as best as she could, Catra then quickly slung the cloak over her shoulders and tied the bandanna over her face. With a hefty sigh, Catra avoided the various security and detection bots as she snuck out of the Horde Base and stepped back into the Fright Zone. Launching herself onto all fours, Catra took off and headed for the outside world, never stopping once to turn around and look back her at the life she was now leaving behind.


	2. Desolate

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Small animal death mentioned part way through toward the end. Otherwise, no major trigger warnings are needed for this chapter besides those already present.

Dry.  
Everything felt dry.  
Slowly lifting her head, Catra squinted her eyes at how bright the world around her was. Last night when she had left, she picked a direction and didn't stop traveling until her eyelids became too heavy to keep up. When the draining of sleep started overcome her and slow her mind down, messing with her ability to stand up even on all fours. She picked a small dip in the sandy ground near a flat stone, curling up into a tight ball with her canvas draped over her shivering body. Now that she was awake, Catra could take a closer took at her surroundings. There was no vegetation as far as she could see besides a few cacti and desert flowers scattered about. Mostly, all she saw was yellow, red, and brown sand dunes and more flat rocks like the one she slept beside. Her head was pounding and her stomach growled. Dusting off the sand from her canvas, Catra reached for her knapsack and pounded it with her hands a few times to get the sand that collected up on its outside off. She then opened it up and pulled out a flask. It was nearly full from refilling it at one point last night by a stream. Realizing how dumb it was of her to not bring matches or a pot of some sort, she let out a drawn-out, hefty sigh and placed the flask to her lips, tipping her head back to let the lukewarm earthy water run over her dried out tongue. Never in her life had she felt so parched before. Her lips were already beginning to crack. She ran her rough tongue over them, feeling each of the little divots and growing slits. She cursed herself for not bringing chap-stick.

Catra held onto the brown rock beside her as she forced herself up onto her feet, trying to shake sand out of her leggings and ears. Thoughts of returning home flitted through her mind, where she could have her bed and cold water again where quickly met with the painful flash of Shadow Weaver forcing herself onto her again. Feeling her blood rush through her body as the thought occurred, Catra was almost positive her stomach tied itself into a knot and within moments, the water she had just swallowed down rushed its way back up her throat and spewed out along with the rest of her stomach contents onto the sand in front of her. As her throat and lips burned from the acidic onslaught, Catra steadily lowered herself down onto the rock, spitting out the remaining bile in her mouth. She wasn't sure if it was the water making her sick or the dark clouds that covered her mind. Either way, she started to pick at one of her stolen ration bars, breaking off tiny pieces and popping the sludge-like substance into her mouth. The rocky-taste was the best one out of the few colors they offered. It wasn't particularly good, just better. Hoping that having something solid in her stomach would help, Catra picked up her belongings and stepped off. She could't remember which was the way she came. The desert expanding out around her seemed to never end, stretching as far as forever. It didn't dawn on her until she made her way toward a rocky-slope that jutted out of the sandy-clay ground along the horizon that she realized that she was in the Crimson Waste. Chills went up her spine despite how hot it was under her sun and under her canvas. As much as she wanted to take off everything she wore, she knew that it would be safer to keep it on. 

By the time that Catra finally reached the ridge, her feet ached and burned from walking on the hot sand the entirety of the day. The sun was still sitting high in the sky, but well past it's peak. Judging by its position, she figured it was most likely around five or six in the afternoon and that everything would hopefully start cooling down in a few hours. She had no idea on where to go at this point as she was completely lost. Going into the Crimson Waste is a suicide mission on its own. Stepping into the shade of the large, jagged rock formation, she leaned her back against its rough surface and closed her eyes, letting out a deep breath. The shade didn't help with making things feel much cooler, but it did get the sun off of her head and face. Catra pulled the bandanna down from off her mouth and nose and exhaled slowly, feeling the dry air fill up her lungs. In its own way, she found it to be refreshing. The cotton wasn't the easiest fabric in the world to breathe through and having it out of her face was a relief. She couldn't deny it did it's job, however. She took a few moments overall to just collect herself and think about the journey she had ahead of her. If she were to survive in the Crimson Waste she would have to made various changes to the way in which she was currently going about everything. In a matter of a few hours her water would be gone and there was no other water source in sight. Even if it made her sick, she needed to remain hydrated. Sliding down the rocky slope, the rocks scratched at her back in an uncomfortable manner until she felt her bottom land on the ground beneath her feet. Now sitting, she stretched her legs out in front of her, allowing her muscles to relax and her aching feet to recover. She needed to keep moving. She knew that. She also was well aware that her body would protest the moment she would get up and that wasn't a battle she was excited to have to fight and had a gut feeling she would lose. 

Catra tipped her head back, letting out an ear-splitting caterwaul, sending insects nearby scattering away from her and dashing for cover. There was so much pain she was harboring deep within her chest. Screaming didn't help much on her throat, but it did help with relieving a slight bit of the stress and heaviness Catra felt weighing down on her shoulders and chest every second that never seemed to stop growing. Her eyes started to feel slightly glassy and within moments, hot tears started to drip down her cheeks. She pulled her knees in to her chest, burying her face behind them as she cried in silence. Wrapping her tail tightly around her ankles neatly, Catra was now balled up defensively, her shoulders trembling and her chest aching as she cried. Her eyes began to burn from the liquid that poured out of them against her will. She didn't know what to do anymore. She sunk her nails in deep into her forearms, feeling the claws sinking in deep. A hot, sticky liquid bushed out from underneath her finger tips as her self-inflicted wounds began to bleed. She wanted this entire nightmare to be over. Everything seemed like it was happened so fast and she wasn't able to comprehend any of it. She didn't want to comprehend any of it. Now alone in her thoughts, she was forced to. Too much of yesterday was forget and too much was remembered. She pushed the thought back, trying to focus on survival. She didn't want to accept the reality of what had happened and how she left everything she had known on an impulse. Cursing herself and how stupid she was to make such a mistake, she knew there was no going back at this point. Her life in the Horde was over. Without any plans, Catra wiped off her tears with the back of her hand and stretched out where she sat, leaning back on the palms of her hands. The life of a vagabond was her new reality and that was just something she would have to accept for what it was no matter how much she hated it. 

Wincing as she stood up, Catra forced herself back onto her feet and began to rummage through her knapsack for bandage. She unraveled enough of the roll to wrap around her arms a few times before tying off the gauze-like fabric and tossing the roll back into the small grey and white bag and slinging it over her shoulders. Shaking out her bandanna, she tied the red cloth over her mouth and nose again just before draping the heavy cloak over her body once more. She wondered if this as how Shadow Weaver felt most of the time with her heavy, long velvet robes. Catra shook the thought out of her head, trying to push the sorceress away. She wasn't sure if she could handle having to live with these reoccurring thoughts and considered wandering the desert until she couldn't anymore and fell to a slow and violent death, like many of those her troops slaughtered the day before. A part of her stomach twisted once again and she had to hold her mouth shut to try and prevent anything from coming back up again. Swallowing down the burning bile, she stepped forward on her journey once again to aimlessly wander the empty desert. 

Sand blew gently with a light gust of air that burst over the flat terrain. Everything seemed silent besides the hum of what Catra assumed were cicadas. The rocky slope was now a good few paces paces behind her as she trekked on. A few insects seemed to squirm around the flat, brown rocks that littered the sandy expanse in front of her, climbing up and down along any cacti's rough, green surface and dodging the prickly spines that lined the plants' flesh. Her stomach growled, the small bit of the ration bar she consumed wasn't fulfilling in the slightest. Frowning, the feline wasn't sure what to do at this point. Nothing around her seemed fulfilling and there was no way in all of Etheria would she eat six-legged crawling creatures. Her skin shivered at the thought. She would die here, no doubt. Over head, the sun continued to slowly sink down toward the horizon. With out a single cloud in the sky, she was looking forward to the night and not having to have the hot behemoth blazing down hot above her. Suddenly, the sand beneath her foot shifted and a small green lizard squirmed out from underneath her foot. Excitement flooded through her veins temporarily as she watched it dash off and rebury itself a few steps away. She stared intently as the sand, looking for any sign it was moving. Not seeing any, her ears pinned themselves back and she lowered herself to the ground, slowly stripping away the cloak she had wrapped around her body for protection and shimmying off the knapsack with it. She crept forward, the sand singed her fingertips, but she didn't care. Just inches away from where she watched the lizard bury its scaly green head, Catra launched herself down, her unsheathed claws breaking the surface of the desert and channeling down. Feeling something rough wiggling about beneath her finger tips she squeezed. Her nails sunk into flesh and she pulled the lizard out. Catra stared the limp body on her hands, its blood staining her claws. She frowned.

'Why do you feel so sad, Catra? You didn't feel sad yesterday when you killed those civilians.' She thought to herself bitterly. She winced, sucking in a deep breath of air of regret. 

"That was different..." She muttered to herself, knowing that the only difference between killing the lizard and killing the Seaworthy folk was that the lizard was for survival. As regret began to surge through her own body, she tossed the lizard away from her. The small green creature smacked against a rock, leaving a body splatter upon the jagged surface before flopping ungracefully onto the sandy ground. Catra turned away from it, slinking back over to grab her cloak and bag to put them back on again. Standing up from where she had been crawling, Catra took a few steps in the direction she had been travelling in before pausing, her heart beating heavily. She couldn't just leave the lizard there no matter how sick she felt. Her mental state wouldn't allow her. Much like the Seaworthy folk, the lizard was just minding its own business and trying to live its best life in safety. And like the Seaworthy folk, she stripped the lizard away from its life and its will to live. Turning back around, she retrieved its dead body. Unlike the Seaworthy folk, she decided not to leave it's body and its life go to waste, to die wastefully. With a strange familiarity, Catra stuck its head in her mouth and twisted her head, both hearing the spine crack and feeling it happen right there in her tongue and lips. A warm metallic fluid gushed into her mouth and poured over her hands from the dismantled body. Ideally, she would have cooked it but had no way to do so out here because like the water, her dumbass forgot to bring matched and there was nothing out here useful to make a fire with. Catra forced herself to begin to chew, feeling the delicate skull crack and shatter beneath her teeth. The feeling of it was so surreal and unlike anything she had ever felt before, especially food wise. Other than the blood being a slight bit too salty for her, the bland, sponginess of the brain and even the bones were surprisingly pleasant to her taste buds. Even the leathery skin had a distinct crispy taste to it. As she chewed on it's head, she sat down on the rock she thrust it upon a few moments ago and popped off one of its arms.

Catra couldn't get over the crunch of the tiny bones between her teeth, and although the arm didn't offer much meat on it, the bones and skin once again provided a flavorful experience for her and she eagerly ripped off the other and ate it as well. In her mouth, she chewed everything down to fine a pulp and swallowed. Everything went down smoothly it seemed and her stomach growled for more. A small part of her felt sad that she was already starting to run out of lizard. Moving onto its legs, she nipped either of them off with her fangs to prevent tearing the body and losing the innards. She wasn't entirely sure what parts of lizards were safe to eat as the desert survival course she had taken years ago remained fuzzy in her mind. Either way, the legs tasted much like the arms but even better. Having more meat on them, the flesh was sweet and addictive, making her mouth water and she wanted more. The metallic taste of the blood seemed to have disappeared the more she focused on the parts she truly did enjoy. With just the body in her hand now, she bit off the tail and was met with another sweet and meaty experience, chewing that down and swallowing it greedily. She didn't know how to go about the rest of the body and decided to experiment. She slid a claw down the delicate skin along the belly and peeled back the scaly green protection and slipped it into her mouth. It was a little salty, but not unbearable. Next time, she told herself that she would tear it into thin strips to dry out. Maybe there was a way for her to jerky it with how salty the blood was. Under the skin was a pink, muscular body. A slight purr rose in her throat, surprising her, as she eyed the meat and used her claws to pry it from the body as a whole. She popped the small pink chunks into her mouth and let her tongue run over the smooth texture before chewing and swallowing the sweetness down. Catra swiped her tongue over her lips to lick away any of the tiny scales that clung to her skin. The innards grossed her out, seeing as how gooey they were. She cautiously nibbled on one and quickly spit it out, unable to describe the taste and texture. Cracking open the chest, she scooped everything out and tossed it onto the ground before consuming the rest of the skeleton. 

She wasn't full, but it was enough to satisfy her for the time being, subduing her hunger for a while longer. Her stomach gurgled momentarily, upset with the sudden change in diet before calming down. She almost felt excited by her newfound meal. It had tasted better than any of the stony-flavored ration bars she had eaten for years at the Horde. With this sudden excitement came about a new kind of hope. Maybe she could live in the Crimson Waste after all. However, she still needed water. A thought occurred to her...

Lizards also needed water. With this realization, Catra got up from the rock and looked around. She couldn't see anything around her that would point to a water source, but then another piece of logic popped up in her head. Cacti were plants and plants also needed water to survive. Pulling the stolen shank out of her knapsack, Catra turned to the nearby cacti and sliced into the green coating, being careful to not poke herself. A small droplet of plant-water seeped through the cut, but it wasn't anything significant enough for her to drink. She pondered about how to go about this for a moment and decided to dig dog to the roots. She used the shank to help her dig down, and eventually sand grew gradually less loose and felt damp. Tossing the shank away, she was now feverishly digging a hole in the ground, feeling small amounts of water beginning to seep through the sand and fill into the hole. The deeper she dug, the more water that came out. It felt like there was a sudden burst in energy a a jolt of excitement flashed through her like lightning. She was going to survive as long as she didn't become sick! With her hands, she cupped up some of the ground water and brought it to her lips, drinking it down gingerly. It was warm and had sand particles in it, but it didn't matter to her. She was just pleased to find a way to drink. With this new discovery, she would survive out here after all. She had an actual chance. A laughter broke out of her chest and she smiled, her tail swaying side-to-side happily. She filled up her flasks as much as she could, digging a little deeper if she needed and cut out some of the cacti roots to bring along with her to chew on. Things finally felt as though there was a chance it was looking up. Catra gathered up her belongings and then quickly noticed small insects swarming around the lizard guts she threw only a little bit ago. Surly something here would eat the insects, right? With this mind, Catra decided to return to the nearby rocky slope to set up a place to camp. Draping her canvas over the surface, she could lay down on the ground and toss it over her when she was ready for sleep without having to wear it. She waited around, not far off from the lizard guts, hollowing out one of the cacti roots she collected earlier and plucking off some of the spines. Loading a couple into one end of the pipe, she took a deep breath and blew, sending the spines flying into the air, cutting through it like a makeshift dart gun. It didn't go very far, but she was alright with that and decided to sit by and wait for any kind of creature to take the bait. 

Although it felt like forever, Catra did manage to snag a second lizard by pouncing on it as the guts from earlier rotted. It never attracted much besides the insects, but stepping on a second lizard was a pleasant discovery she knew she didn't have much right to complain about with her given situation. With a side of cacti-root pulp, sandy ground water and a small piece of ration bar, Catra was able to fill her stomach up fully for the night. She laid the new guts out for more insects and this time laid small strips of skin soaked in blood out on the rock to dry over night. Despite everything, Catra vowed to herself that she would come out on top. She would win this battle of survival out here in the Crimson Waste no matter what was thrown at her.


	3. A Fatal Defect

Alarm bells went off, signalling the start of a new day. Cadets rose out of their bunks groggy and tired, many stretching out and yawning while others sat there staring around the barracks in a total daze. Every morning started out this way and despite this, majority of the cadets still struggled to get up in the morning. Fully geared soldiers returning in from the night shift stepped into the cadet barracks, stun batons resting up against their right shoulder. A total of ten stepped inside, their grey and green helmets gleaming under the red alarm lights as they flashed above on the ceiling. All ten of them marching in step to one another as they made their way through, looking for any cadet still asleep. Every so often, one would step out of line to pat down a pile of blue blankets laying on a bed to check for a sleeping body. If one was found, it was up to the soldier to grab them by their arm and pull them out of their bunk and get them to stand on their feet. Everything was going as it should be. Everyone had an hour between the wake-up alarm to change or shower as needed before breakfast. Near the entrance to the barracks on the left-hand side was a bunk now completely empty. No one slept in the top or the bottom and the sheets for both were a mess. Force Captain Catra had shredded the bottom bunk which belonged to the former Force Captain Adora. Usually, Shadow Weaver would find the feline sleeping there anyway despite Adora having been transferred to the Force Captain quarters the same night she defected. Now it seemed a though Catra must have done the same as the sheets on the top bunk were left neatly made and folded for Force Captain Catra never slept in them. She couldn't remember a time the feline ever had. She was always glued to her beloved Adora's side and no matter what Shadow Weaver did, she couldn't get Adora to leave behind the degenerate soldier. She never understood why Adora liked Catra so much. Ever since the day she had found her in a box left outside of the Horde's main entrance, Adora has done everything in her power to keep Catra there. 

Shadow Weaver didn't follow the Horde soldiers as they made their usual morning commute. Every set of barracks received their fleet of ten night-shift soldiers to make sure everyone was awake. As for the old sorceress, she was here for one reason and one reason only. She stepped up to her wards' former bunk, seeing it wasn't just empty- which wasn't unusual as she knew Catra would typically wake up before the alarms, but completely cold and void of any and all warmth. She could feel her blood pressure begin to spike and small, stocky figure made its way over to her. Shadow Weaver looked up to see Lonnie, her dreads out of place and dark circles hung under her light brown eyes. She was clearly tired, stretching out her muscular arms as she stepped away from her bunk. 

"Good morning, Shadow Weaver," she said, dipping her head in a polite, curt nod. Shadow Weaver ignored her, turning her attention back toward her wards' bunk. She continued to stare at it in silence, hoping that if she didn't acknowledge Lonnie's presence that the cadet would eventually leave. She didn't have time to deal with immature, poorly trained cadets when both of her wards were missing. She was still pained by Adora's betrayal, defecting from the Horde in return for a lavish life in Bright Moon with Queen Angella and Princess Glimmer and their stupid little archer friend, Bow. Despite how much she wanted to rid Catra from her life, with Adora gone, the degenerate feline was all she had left. She clenched her fist in frustration, anger flowing through her veins. Lonnie continued to stand there, her back straight an erect. She held her chin up high and proud even with the weight of sleep pulling her eyelids down. Shadow Weaver had to admit, the girl was brave and smart, probably the most fit of all of the remaining cadets to be a Force Captain. Turning away, she didn't want to think of that yet. Shadow Weaver wasn't ready or even remotely close to willing to having to accept the reality of the situation. Both of her wards were gone. She couldn't shake the thought from her mind and with Lonnie just standing there, staring at her with her bright, light brown eyes, tired yet eager as she waited for Shadow Weaver to respond. The sorceress shook her head, her floating black hair raising up high above her skull. She gave in and turned to Lonnie. 

"Good morning, Cadet Lonnie. Can I help you?" She asked sweetly with a sigh, the white eyes on her red and black mask smiling. Lonnie didn't move. She kept a straight face as she responded, never breaking free from the attention the assumed. 

"I wanted to know what it was that I could do for you, Shadow Weaver. I'm ready for my next mission," the cadet stated boldly. Just behind her, Shadow Weaver could see the shapes of her friend Kyle and Rogelio in the background, waiting patiently for Lonnie to finish up with their conversation. Taking a deep breath, Shadow Weaver had to think about what she wanted to say. She knew at any moment if Hordak found out about Catra's disappearance that she would be made to appoint a new Force Captain once again and potentially lose her own place as second in command to the Horde's ruthless leader. She worked hard to get to where she was, forging her own connection to the Black Garnet runestone that was kept hidden away and protected in her own lair. She wasn't about to lose it because both of her wards defected. She wanted to send a troop out to search for Catra, just as she had done with Adora when she defected. Oh, how she missed Adora's sweet smile and her laughter. She wanted nothing but good for that girl and that was why she put up with Catra's lazy and disrespectful behavior. Realizing she was getting lost in thought, Shadow Weaver shifted gear to focus her attention back on Lonnie. She stepped over to the cadet, placing a cold grey hand on her warm cheek. Lonnie didn't break eye contact with Shadow Weaver, which was something she liked to see in a cadet. Shadow Weaver knew the girl would make for a fine soldier. 

"I don't have one for you just yet, young cadet," Shadow Weaver started as she continued to caress Lonnie's cheek. There was no emotion in her face. Even her eyes failed to give away any clue as to how she as feeling. Shadow Weaver was so used to Adora's bid-ability and Catra's stubbornness that when presented with someone so determined to work, she didn't know how to respond. Lonnie was in every definition a great soldier ready to die for her cause. "I'm sure I will have one for you later. Why don't you stop by my lair later today, after breakfast, and I'll give you your assignment then?" She suggested pulling her hand away and tapping her pointed finger tips together. Lonnie gave Shadow Weaver another curt nod, slightly dipping her head in respect. 

"Yes, Shadow Weaver. I'll see you then," Lonnie replied, a small smile cracking on her face. Shadow Weaver smiled in response, shooing her away with her hand. Lonnie eagerly turned around and dashed off to join her companions, laughing, just before turning away and running off to hop in the breakfast line. Shadow Weaver's smiled faded as the cadet ran off and she was left alone in the emptying barracks with her thoughts. Letting out a heavy sigh, Shadow Weaver steadily lowered herself onto Adora's former bed, running her hands over the tears Catra left behind. She saw a small drawing on the inside of the bunk along the wall. Massive claw scratch-marks were etched out on stop of the drawings. Shadow Weaver leaned in, narrowing her eyes to get a better look at the images. She couldn't tell which of the girls had drawn them - maybe they both did- but it was of themselves. Clearly Catra had scratched it out in her fit of rage. She shook her head, wondering how she failed so miserably to turn Adora into the soldier she was designated to be. She hoped that one day Adora would take her place as second in command. Shadow Weaver's stomach turned at the thought of her favorite ward now working against the very place that raised her, the very place she once called home. Balling up her fist, Shadow Weaver shot her arm out at the picture, feeling the metal dent beneath her knuckles as she punched the side, right on top of Catra's face. As her blood began to boil, Shadow Weaver's mind started to race. She scrambled to think of what she needed to be done. This was all of Catra's fault, wasn't? No. It was her own. She should have never let Adora keep Catra around and maybe, just maybe, she would have her beloved Adora back. She hated herself for not offing Catra years ago or any of the times she came close it. Shadow Weaver felt weak, never able to tell Adora "no" and took a moment to think about the rebel she was partially responsible for. 

Catra was now out there on her own, probably running to Adora to cry about her problems like she always did. Crying about how 'Shadow Weaver hurt her again' and anything else petty. Shadow Weaver simply shook her head at how weak Catra was. She never could take her punishments silently, she always had to blab about it to Adora and seek her protection. The worst part was, Shadow Weaver allowed it. She didn't know how she managed to let such cowardly behavior continue for so long. She hated herself for allowing it to go on. With Catra now crawling back at Adora's feet, probably wanting to join the Rebellion as an excuse to kill Shadow Weaver, the sorceress then realized what it was that she needed to do, no matter how badly it would hurt Adora. A part of her was even willing to potentially sacrifice Adora's own safety. Maybe she could save her and convince her to return back home to the Horde, back home to her. With a sigh, Shadow Weaver knew it wouldn't be that simple. She needed to think of something fast before Hordak found out and she got in trouble for it. She knew that no matter what happened, Hordak would still see her as a failure, unable to keep and maintain both of her wards that she had trained and insisted on keeping since infancy. Now both of the were working together to bring down the empire they once served and the master they once took their orders from. Shadow Weaver gripped her temples with both of her hands, feeling dizzy and light-headed at the thought. Despite the weak feelings and her twisting and turning stomach, she forced herself steadily up to her feet and began to slowly make her way out of the barracks and into the hallway. The long corridor extended out in front of her like a never ending green, metal tunnel. Perpendicular to the one in front was another that stretched forever left and right. She made a left turn and started on her way to Hordak's sanctum. 

Shadow Weaver knew better than to go there and disturb him without warning, but she felt that her reason was a good enough excuse for a rather rude entry regardless. She had a bit of a way to go before she would actually make it to Hordak's sanctum. While he was on the same floor, the place was just big with many twists and turns. While most things in the Horde were orderly, the way he built the place was not and it drove Shadow Weaver insane. At least back in Mystacor, everything was planned out nicely. The thought hit her hard like a falling rock. 

Mystacor...

Micah...

She paused in her tracks, leaning her shoulder against the nearest wall to stop and think. It felt as though her heart were breaking again as she recalled the way in which not only Micah rejected her, but the way in which the rest of the sorcerers did as well. Despite her horribly disfigured body, the Spell of Obtainment worked. She was now the most powerful Etherian who wasn't a princess. She even made her own connection to the Black Garnet that Force Captain Scorpia had lost, something no other Etherian had ever done before. None of that could replace her love for Micah. The sweet boy was like a son to her. If he was still alive, if he hadn't been killed by a senseless battle Queen Angella forced him into, he would probably be even more powerful than her. Unlike her, however, Micah didn't have the same lust for power. He knew when to stop and a part of Shadow Weaver hated him for that. She had taught the young sorcerer all that he had known about the power of arcane magic as well as dark magic and he was well above and beyond his years. Micah had always been so... gifted with his magical talents and abilities while Shadow Weaver- then Light Spinner- had to fight for while growing up. She was forced to prove herself worthy of magic and to this day, she never ceased to prove to herself that she was in fact worthy of such powers and greatness. She forced herself to continue on despite the heavy heart wanting to hold her back. Leaving the wall that was holding her steady and stable, she placed one foot in front of the other to make her way to Hordak's sanctum like she originally intended. The thought still didn't leave her brain and continued to float around endlessly. 

Eventually Shadow Weaver made it to Hordak's sanctum. She stood outside the doors boldly with her chin held high and her ink-colored hair floating above menacingly. The strands of velvet that branched off from the bottom of her robe waved back and forth in the air as the electrical powers of the Black Garnet surged through her aging body, bringing a sense of light and strength to her that she normally did not have otherwise. The bit of stone that was embedded in the forehead of her mask glowed a bright hue of red, casting bits of shadows along her mask and down her neck. The white eyes of her mask shone brightly as well. She was nervous, but by shrouding herself in the magical power of the runestone that once belonged to one of the most powerful royal families in all of Etheria, she was able to hide behind it. Whether or not Hordak knew was beyond her, but she didn't want to find out and she wasn't about to ask. Taking a deep breath, she raised her chin an called out to the leader. 

"Lord Hordak," she started, calling into the heavy, closed metal doors in front of her. Blue lights flashed along its border, telling her that it was locked. From inside, she could make out the distant, faded sounds of Hordak's imps crashing about and chattering away, laughing as they always did whenever Hordak was upset. Shadow Weaver held her breath, realizing that she had come to talk to him at such a bad time after all and what was about to happen would not be taken easily and she would not be spared. Clenching her fists into tight balls, she felt the pointy tips of her fingers dig into her skin, pricking her. The pain seemed to keep Shadow Weaver's mind somewhat calm as her pointed ears began to twitch as the new sounds coming from inside. Hordak was angry and he was screaming about something. Straining her ears, she tried to pick up what it was that he was saying to no avail. Shadow Weaver let out the air she was holding back and waited patiently for the Horde leader to open the door in front of her and allow her in. Sometimes it took a few minutes and that was fine with Shadow Weaver. The less she was in there when he was raging, the better. She wanted to get this over with as well, however, knowing that whatever was going on inside wouldn't be good and her interruption would only make this worse for her. She had to come to terms with the fact that this entire plan of hers she had created might backfire, but that was just a risk she would have to take if she were to get what she wanted. Within moments, the doors in front of her began to open with a loud, groaning sound. The gears needed to open such a massive, heavy door creaked and echoed through the halls. 

Inside, Hordak stood with his back turned, the portal machine he had been working on crumbed apart and was now laying on the floor in pieces in front of him. Shadow Weaver stiffened at the sight. Hordak's shoulders and chest was rising and falling where he stood from breathing in his failure so deeply, that even when standing as far away a she was, Shadow Weaver could still see it. She attempted to swallow a lump in her throat down, but failed. She knew better than to step in without invitation, so she continued to stand there waiting patiently. With slow, calculating movements, Hordak only turned his head to barely look over his shoulder, staring at the ground and avoiding the sorceress's prying gaze. A disgusted look was painted onto his pale gray face and his red eyes were severely narrowed, standing out boldly against his dark blue hair. Hordak crinkled his face.

"Shadow Weavere," his voice boomed, strong enough to shake her to her core. She took another deep breath and held it, waiting for the words to come. "You may enter."

Hordak's voice was cold and crisp, incredibly firm and almost daring. With now no other choice, Shadow Weaver had to take that dare if she was going to make her new, devilish plan work. She needed it to work desperately in order to not only keep her position of power and her connection to the Black Garnet, but also to make sure Catra didn't go near her precious Adora again now that they had both defected. She cautiously stepped forward, her own footsteps remaining nearly silent and gentle as she entered the room. Every sound that was made in here seemed to echo, bouncing off of the walls with even greater intensity each time. She hated how empty his sanctum felt to her even though it was full of his various gadgets and tools, projects and so much more that she didn't even know. Hordak's favorite imp flew around above her head, floating through her hair as it made its way over to Hordak, carefully propping itself on his right shoulder. Its boyish face stared at Shadow Weaver with a smug look, it's pointed tail wiggling happily behind it as if it already knew of her failure. With her luck, it probably already did and so did Hordak. Nonetheless, she dipped her head respectfully and acted like this was the first time anyone other herself and Lonnie's crew knew what had happened. 

"Lord Hordak, thank you for allowing me in on such a short notice," she started, getting down to one knee. As her patella hit the cold, smooth cement floor, she could feel the aches and pains of old age shoot up along her thigh and pierce deep into her hip. "I know this isn't ideal, but we've had a rather... interesting situation occur and it's something that you need to know..." Shadow Weaver said, going on. The last part felt as if it was stuck deep within her throat, but she forced it out.

"Force Captain Catra defected."

Shadow Weaver braced herself for whatever was about to come. Yet, nothing did. Nothing physical or even vocal. Instead, Hordak remained silent and just stared at her with unblinking, red eyes. She tried to swallow that lump back down again, unsure of whether or not she even preferred this less violent approach as it was new and made her nervous. Everything she knew she could and would expect was now essentially thrown out of the window and useless. 

"You mean to tell me that both of your own wards defected?" He growled, his voice now as cold as ice, even more bitter than before. "The two wards you had been so determined to keep, that you said would have great power, that you raised, have defected? And let me guess... they're both fighting against us now, aren't they?" 

Shadow Weaver hung her head low yet continued to let her air remain afloat. She knew she needed to admit to her mistakes, yet stand by them confidently. Any sign of uncertainty would easily wreck her and possibly be a death sentence for the old sorceress. 

"Yes, Lord Hordak. They have both defected, but I do not know if Catra is working against us now. I have seemed to have lost some of my connection with her. Allow me to explain," she then started, continuing to keep her head low to the ground as she spoke, trying to make sure there was no hint of how terrified she was. Her heart was pounding in her chest and she was almost sure that Hordak could hear not only how fast it was going, but also the blood roaring in her ears. "I had caught Force Captain Catra breaking one of our rules regarding lustful behaviors and she did not seem to take to her punishment very lightly. In a cowardly effort, she decided it was best for her to run off- possibly to go run back to her friend who always saved her from her own consequences- and hide. You see, Lord Hordak, Catra was not a good fit for the position and her actions show. She is weak and unable to stand up to her mistakes or take the punishment boldly." Shadow Weaver then added, chewing on her lip behind her mask as she waited for Hordak to speak. He took a few steps closer to her, his feet now directly in front of her. 

"I see," he says, almost... understanding. Shadow Weaver had to do all she could to keep her breathing steady. She was still unsure of how to take his response to everything that was going on. "So, this means you have a replacement in mind, yes? Someone who is perhaps, more fit to serve than either of your failed wards?" His words stung her like the electricity she controlled, but all she could do was dip her head. 

"I do, Lord Hordak," She breathed. "Someone who would have made a much better Force Captain than Catra could ever have." 

Hordak grunted, now walking away. Was she really getting off this easy? Maybe Hordak was just expecting this sort of behavior from Catra. She was a disgrace to the Horde, after all. Shivers went up her spine at the thought of the feline ever feeling attracted to Adora. She didn't want them friends to begin with. It almost felt like a major slap in the face when she found out. Her stomach began to turn at the sickening, barbaric idea. She was almost glad Catra was gone. No, she was glad that menace was gone... right? 

"Good. Now leave, I'm busy."

Shadow Weaver got up to her feet and bowed respectfully before quickly leaving his sanctum, more chills going up her spine as the door closed behind her. She felt relieved that everything had gone on well. Now, it was simply up to her to finish what it was that she had started. Shadow Weaver started to make her way toward the cafeteria where she was almost certain she would be able to find a particular cadet fit for the job. With her heart still racing from her encounter with Hordak, it took her a while to get it to calm down and return to normal which made the trek across the main level of the Fright Zone seem like it took a lot longer than it should have. Either way, she eventually made it there. As Shadow Weaver slipped her head in through the cafeteria doors to look around, trying not to draw too much attention to herself, she realized that it was already too late and almost all eyes were on her or at least were at one point. She quickly scanned the crowd as they were chowing down on the disgusting slop they were fed three times a day for her chosen cadet. As if she was on the same page as Shadow Weaver, Lonnie stood up from a table she was sitting at from the middle of the large room and made her way over to the sorceress, a thick brow raised in concern on her face. Shadow Weaver looked at her delightedly, taking her by the hand and leading her out of the room.

"You can eat later, I promise. I just need to talk to you about something serious," She explained to Lonnie as her reason for taking her away from breakfast. Lonnie nodded in understanding. Her face which was normally unreadable to Shadow Weaver looked eager and excited, happily anticipating the news she knew she deserved to hear. Even though it hurt Shadow Weaver to have to do this for a second time since Adora' disappearance, she knew that this time, Lonnie would be the perfect choice and deserved this position not just more than Catra, but out of any of the other cadets. Shadow Weaver led Lonnie to her lair and closed the door behind her to prevent eavesdroppers or any unwelcomed visitors from dropping by. After that, she made sure to pull out a somewhat comfortable chair for Lonnie to sit in and offered her some of her own food, which was much more than bars of slop. Lonnie's face seemed to light up at the buffet offered to her. She picked out a few servings as to not be rude and ate it slowly as Shadow Weaver joined her. 

"I wanted to inform you that you've been selected to be Force Captain now that Catra has defected," Shadow Weaver began. The words felt so wrong in her mouth, so sinful. "With that being said, I have a very important and secret mission for you. You cannot tell another living soul. Do you understand?"

"Yes, Shadow Weaver!" Lonnie replied, her light brown eyes wide and glistening with excitement. Seeing how passionate the young girl was about this made a part of Shadow Weaver's heart feel warm and she smiled. 

"Good. With Catra's defection, she poses a risk to not only the Horde, but to the rest of Etheria as well. I don't expect you to bring her back, but this is the plan that I need you to do for me..." Shadow Weaver began, her voice becoming serious and daunting. 

"For Etheria..."


	4. Fugitive

The ground before Catra was losing its sandy texture and turning into something more solid and firm underfoot. The vegetation around her was becoming more frequent, with deepening roots reaching well under the surface. Even the color was beginning to turn into a blend of tans and browns and felt softer than the tiny rock particles she had grown accustomed to over the last four nights. A part of Catra didn't want to leave the Crimson Waste, but she was tired of feeling disgusting from not bathing for so long and was unable to bear the smell of her own body odor any longer. Much like the matches- once again- she regretted not bringing in basic hygiene products even though it wouldn't have mattered very much in the end given that she was alone in one of the harshest terrains in all of Etheria. As the environment began to slowly turn into something easier and more hospitable, a field of thin trees stood tall out against the horizon. Her heart pounded a little quicker at realizing that she was finally coming up to somewhere a bit more familiar to her than the wasteland. She was excited to leave the Crimson Waste nonetheless and looked forward to reaching civilization once again. The last four days Catra spent wandering around aimlessly, wanting to get through it all with no where to go. She was fine with any kind of contact at this point. Despite knowing how to survive on her own, hunting lizards and drinking unsanitary water, she missed the comforts of having a roof over her head and sand out of her butt-crack. 

After what felt like hours, Catra eventually reached the end of the Crimson Waste and found herself walking into an area that gradually become more and more forested the longer she traveled inside. There was a strange sense of familiarity here as her eyes scanned the purplish hue of the tree bark and the cyan colored leaves. A feint shroud of mist that clung to the ground and the various bushes and exotic flowers that grew here became increasingly thick, making it hard for Catra to see past the thick white cloud. Looking down, she realized it was hard for her to even see her feet. With a heavy sigh, she did her best to navigate, relying mostly on hope that she wouldn't get her foot caught under a root. They were growing in size as well as the trees where starting to become thicker and taller, telling Catra that the further in she went, the older they were. In spite of all of this, the cyan grass felt soft against her rough, calloused feet. It was a pleasant change from the desert and she didn't need to wear her canvas cloak anymore. Brown-purple rocks suddenly appeared, jutting out every which way as Catra continued along. Where ever she was, it was becoming an mountainous forest...

A forest!

Catra paused to look around. She recognized this place and had been here a few times before. The last being... the last being when Adora found that sword. She sucked in a deep breath of air, holding it in to make walking through this part of Etheria more bearable. It had been a while since Adora left now, but she was still constantly in Catra's mind. She missed the way she smelled, the way she would soflty snore at night. Even how Adora would wear socks to bed despite Catra being incredibly vocal on how she thought it was weird and she hated it. Sitting down on the soft ground to let herself think and feel for a moment, she could feel her eyes begin to water up. She would do just about anything right now if it meant having Adora there with her, to be wrapped up in her muscular arms once again and to hear her laugh. With her hands running over the grass, she quickly clenched a fist full in either hand, her blood beginning to boil and her heterochromatic eyes narrowing. 

Adora had new friends now. She had replaced her like she did with Lonnie when they were kids. Adora said she didn't, she wanted to be friends with the both of them, but Catra could never really come around to believe the blonde haired girl. A part of her always felt that Adora secretly like others more than her and it hurt. She ripped the grass out, now sobbing. Tears rolled down her cheeks and she found herself blubbering loudly, spitting up thick saliva as she cried ugly, ripping out the grass over and over. Catra couldn't take it. She wanted her best friend back. She wanted a friend. Any friend at this point would have been decent. Catra fell back down onto the ground, now laying there sprawled out, struggling to breathe. She wished everything would go back to normal, that Adora was still there with her and she still had a place in the Horde that wasn't subjected to horrific treatment. Even Hordak respected her more than Shadow Weaver ever did. So many emotions went through her mind, flying by too fast for her to even recognize what any of them were. Anger seared in her belly, clawing at her as hot as fire while her heart felt like it was delicate glass that was shattered from being crushed under the weight of the world. Her face was now soaked in her own salty tears, slowly dripping into her ears and finding their way through all of the small creased in her face. Why did everythinghave to be like it was? Why couldn't she have Adora? 

Turning over to get up, she continued to think on it. Catra knew that she was far from the only soldier to have such feelings. After all, who else supplies the Horde with more cadets? They're not all kidnapped and captured. She gripped the grass once again, this time with unsheathed claws. It was normal for Etherians to have the feelings, that's how families were born and their species survived over generations. More realizations were coming back to Catra. The Horde had rules and they were told to suppress those feelings as it could distract one from their goals. Yet, she couldn't remember a time when anyone had eve been punished in such a way for such things. The fire in her belly gripped her even stronger now. This wasn't about natural and normal feelings to Shadow Weaver. it couldn't have been. It was about Adora, her favorite. It was always about Adora. Catra felt stupid thinking otherwise. There wasn't anything wrong with her. She wasn't dirty or disgusting despite feeling as if she were. Doubt still clung to her belly, that maybe she was looking into this too deeply and that she was wrong, but something in her told her otherwise. Shadow Weaver had only punished the girls for feeling that way toward each other, not because they had those feelings. Catra clenched her teeth, gritting them so hard that they ached. Pulling her hand back, the grass stems ripped and released their unique, earthy scent into the air, stinging the inside of Catra's nostrils. Shadow Weaver was hellbent on making sure Catra stayed away from Adora, even after the former Force Captain defected. She wanted to throw up. 

Catra forced herself up onto her feet, reorganized her bag which now contained multiple cacti roots, seven dead smelly lizards, the sandals she never wore, her shank, the playing cards, a few extra things she picked up along the way from other travelers, such as a compass she had to pry from the dry, dead hands of what once looked to be a Sea-Elf. The loot of previous travelers provided her with the matches she desperately needed, a worn out whip, a green denim jacket that was moth bitten but still useful, and a small pot. In a bite of a curious and grotesque manner, Catra had also removed any teeth she found from the few dead bodies she came across for whatever reason. She wouldn't have mind collecting their bones, but didn't feel like messing with the rotting dead too much, especially as many were drying out an turning into a mummy. She felt content with most of her belongings. Her flasks were placed in last and on top of everything else in the knapsack for quick and easy retrieval as well as the remaining ration bars she had left. Looking around, she wasn't entirely sure which part of the Whispering Woods she was in as the area wasn't just large and confusing to her, but also still somewhat foreign. Regardless of where she was, Catra needed to get to the nearest civilian town. She needed proper food, sleep, and a bath. The only issue was, she didn't know how to get there or where it was. She didn't even know what it was. Starting off again, travelling forward, she just knew that being in the Whispering Woods provided her with a better means for food, water, and shelter. She could camp out here for a while safely if she had to. The only real threat she could think of would be the creatures that roamed about or any poisonous plants. The thought of poisonous plants sent a shiver up her spine. 

Night began to fall, warm orange and pink sky poked through the various holes in the tree canopy overhead, leaving a soft touch on the forested floor below. Seeing the sun set and rise every day the last few days in the Crimson Waste had been one of the most magnificent experiences Catra had ever seen. A part of her almost wished she had left sooner. Left with Adora... Shaking the thought away, Catra set her focus to looking for a place to sleep. Everything around her was becoming increasingly dark. Even though she could see fairly well in dim lighting, Catra didn't like how creepy the place was to begin with, but even more so now that night was coming down upon her. The shadows the trees cast stretched out far and wide, with the added mystical shroud, Catra was struggling to navigate. Knowing there was no point in trying to get anywhere unable to see, she picked out a tree and climbed up it's thick rough bark. Her muscles screamed out in anger at her, not having been used for any kind of hard physical exertion in a while. Gritting her teeth as she climbed, the defected Force Captain hauled herself up to the nearest branch that looked like it could support her weight. The bough was big enough for her sit on and not have to worry about balancing, seeing as she was more than able to balance on the thin railings back at the Horde. As a measure of safety, she used the bandages she had in her bag in addition to the canvas cloak, she still wrapped them around her waist, trying her waist to the trunk and her legs down to the thick branch she sat upon. Catra was in no way comfortable. She tossed her head back against the bark gently, closing her eyes. It took forever for her to eventually drift off into sleep.

Catra woke up only a few hours later. Soft rays of sunlight began to filter through the leafy canopy, lighting up the world below. Having hardly slept at all that night, Catra untied herself from the tree and ungracefully scrambled down the trunk. As her feet hit the grassy surface, she felt her knees buckle and give out. She grunted as she fell forward, barely stopping herself from face-planting. She waited for a moment to regain her balance before trying to stand up again. She felt so out of whack. Not wanting to lose any more time, she pulled out a ration bar from her bag and munched on it as she started to walk through the Whispering Woods. It wasn't until around noon when her ears twitched, picking up the sound of children't laughter. 

Unable to pinpoint where it was coming from, Catra dashed behind a thick, burly tree to hide herself. With her hair as much of a mess as it was and with how badly she smelled, she didn't want to terrify the kids if they were nearby. The laughter seemed to grow louder and she knew that she was close to some kind of village. Excitement prickled through her pelt, realizing that she would be able to get the things she needed and hopefully start to get her life back on a normal path as an Etherian civilian. Taking a deep breathe, Catra stepped out from behind the tree and scanned the area for the children. Off in the distance, she could the tan and purple figures running around and chasing after one another playfully. She was indifferent to children, liking them but finding the to be somewhat of a nuisance. Catra then remembered that just about everything was a nuisance to her and she shrugged. If they ran off terrified from the sight of her, she could at least follow them back home to get to the rest of the village. From there, she would figure it out herself. Making her way over to the playing kids, Catra waved at them nervously as they finally spotted her. They froze in their tracks, jaw dropped and exchanged a glance toward one another. 

"Is-Is th-that?..." The tan one asked quietly. The purple one visibly swallowed something down, hard and nodded their head in agreement. The tan one gasped, cupping their little hands over their mouth and took a step back. Catra raised a brow in confusion. Why were they acting weirder than she had expected? As Catra walked closer, she could see the purple child shaking almost uncontrollably in their shoes. Were they... scared of her? She tried to smile, wanting them to know she wasn't going to hurt them in anyway. 

"Hey," Catra started softly. The purple child let out a loud, audible gasp and immediately clung to the tan one's arm as if the tan child could protect them. "Do you happen to know where the nearest village is? I haven't eaten in a while." She then explained, hoping that would ease their worries. They exchanged a concerned glance at one another and nodded in almost perfect unison. Turning around, the tan child motioned Catra to follow the two with their hand. She flicked her tail happily behind her, grateful that they were still willing to help her out despite being as terrified as they were. She couldn't blame he kids for being scared. It isn't everyday that a strange woman living in the wild comes out of the woods seeking for help, after all. Her being as unkempt as she was probably only made it worse. As Catra followed the children back to their home, she made sure to keep a decent amount of distance between her and the kids. She didn't want to impose herself onto them too much than she already was. From where she stood, she watched them whisper to one another as they walked. Catra strained her ears ever so slightly to pick up on what they were saying but they were just quiet enough to where whatever words were coming out of their mouths were nothing but murmurs. Catra let out a deep sigh, feeling nervous as she walked. 

Off in the distance and through the white fog, Catra could make out the silhouettes of small, hand-crafted houses. They weren't particularly built to last from what she could see so far. The walls were lopsided and made from wood and clay while straw tightly tied together with vines made up the peaked roofs on the cylindrical houses. The closer they came, the easier it was for Catra to see that the village was recently made after all and in a rush. Rubble lay scattered about the village, those who lived there looked dirty and poor. Biting her lower lip, Catra wasn't sure if she would get what she needed from these people. As the kids continued to lead her further in, she was able to see the bright red spray painted logo of the Horde on some of the pieces of rubble or hastily painted over on the sides of all of the poorly constructed shelters. While a good amount of the adults she saw outside paid no attention to her, continuing on with their business of grounding down flower or making clay pots, the majority all met her eyes with a look of fear. She hadn't realized this is what became of Thaymor after she and the rest of the Horde obliterated it the same day she had came face-to-face with She-Ra. She sucked in her breath and held it as she walked behind the children. Everyone started to whisper and point, eyeing her up every which way. The attention made Catra feel incredibly uncomfortable and well out of place. She spend up her steps to catch up with the kids, unsure of where they were taking her. 

Walking along, Thaymor eventually opened up into a small village that was more sustainable in the the center of it all. The buildings here weren't rushed and looked much nicer compared to the rest. She guessed they were building from the inside out, reinforcing the main structures they needed while working on their own personal, private houses after. In the center of it all was a large building made out of tree trunks and clay. Brass shutters adorned the window frames and around the red-wood doors. The roof was made out of tons of small brass plates, already beginning to green around the edges with corrosion. Catra didn't think that they would last long in the damp, wet air that the Whispering Woods had to offer, but this wasn't her place to criticize them on their building methods. Now at the bottom of the social hierarchy here, Catra realized that for the first time in her life sh wasn't enjoying the look of fear on people's faces as they saw her. She felt small, vulnerable and ashamed, much like the way Shadow Weaver made her feel growing up as a young cadet. She swallowed a lump of anxiety down, trying to look confident as much as she could. Deep down inside, Catra knew that the villagers could see right past her faulty facade. She hated the humiliation. Walking through, she was able to see past the physical destruction the Battle for Thaymor caused. 

Catra could see the pain in their eyes, the fear she instilled from crushing down their delicate, hand-made homes with large tanks and zapping their loved ones with stun batons. She had ruined their village, leaving them with nothing but the crumbling memories of yesterday and just dirt to rebuild. When she and the rest of her Horde forces stormed Thaymor, it had been a lot stronger and nicer than what it was now. It had a sense of happiness and peace. Now, looking at all that remained, Catra could see nothing beyond a war-ridden plot of land where fear was nothing more than the reality here. Destruction was all some of these kids knew as they played with one another in the debris. Her heart sunk deep into her stomach. Catra dipped her head, staring at the ground and watching her feet walk under her body. Her face felt hot with shame and she felt a unique sensation forming in her stomach, something she wasn't used to. This new feeling she figured was what was known as regret. She regretted coming in and destroying Thaymor. She watched the backs of the kids in front of her now, walking hand-in-hand with their own heads bowed. Her heart ached. She hurt these kids. She had killed someone's family here. Her mind then flickered back to Sea Worthy. Hundreds of families were now completely torn apart by her bloodshed. She felt sick looking back and remember how excited she was to be stepping in the blood of those she deemed her enemies- enemies for what?- and the way she felt when she was thrilled the moment she put her foot down on who she thought was Princess Mermista's head, almost like a claim to dominance in such a sick and twisted world. The way she was disappointed to only then find out it was no-one more than a civilian like all of others. 

She began to ask herself why, why she did the things she did and why she got such a high from it. Why were the civilians her enemies when they had done nothing to her? The answer was simple and she hated it. The civilians were under the princesses' protection, and the princesses were now all sided with Adora with the exception of Force Captain Scorpia and Entrapta who was neutral on the matter but staying with the Horde to further her own scientific studies. By making the civilians the enemy, Catra could sleep soundly at night with the horrors she had caused and the bodies that she split in the name of the Horde. It was one more battle she had won in destroying Adora, in getting her revenge against the girl for leaving her. After all, she had promised to always be there for her. Like all good things in Catra's life, Adora up and left the Horde- left her- behind with no hesitation just so she could go play hero. In her war against the Horde, Catra couldn't help but feel betrayed. Adora was going back against those who loved her, those who raised her, those who gave her a home when Hordak wanted her gone. She went back on Catra, her best friend, the one person who loved her. Adora's war on the Horde felt like a war on Catra to Catra. It didn't matter that Adora offered her to come. She had made her bed and Catra was determined to make her lie in it. She was tired of being Adora's shadow and tired of needing her to come to her rescue. She didn't need her. She never did. 

Stepping into the building, she was met with a group of individuals all sitting around a large table, discussing among themselves business that didn't matter to Catra in any kind of capacity. Unlike the rest of Thaymor civilians, these individuals were adorned with gold and brass jewelry and wore much nicer, cleaner clothes. The most noble stood up from where they sat in the middle of it all and made their way over to Catra. With them, Catra had also eyed another Magicat who was rippling with muscles, piercing gold and orange eyes, long, elegantly-tipped ears, light brown skin, freckles, and stripes across her arms and neck. Her hair was shaved along the sides and pulled back into a long, curly pony tail with the same stupid little hair poof Adora had. She smirked at Catra as the noble Thaymor individual placed a hand on her shoulder.

"Well, I'll be..." They muttered. Catra looked at the noble, examining their goat-like features and warm brown skin. "It's Catra."

Everyone in the room was frozen with the exception of the Magicat who simply crossed her arms, still with a smug look on her face. Catra's eyes quickly darted around, terrified that they knew her name. The Magicat then stepped forward. 

"Well, Sir Elanthor, I'd be more than willing to exchange the latest ray gun prototypes for her," the Magicat pressed, making her way around the table and gripping Catra by the jaw with a large, steady hand. Catra winced and pulled away, hissing under her breath. The kids quickly stepped off to the side, letting the adults handle the situation. The Magicat chuckled at Catra's response, patting Sir Elanthor on the back. The goat furrowed their brow and shook their head. 

"I'm not sure, Robyn," they sighed, motioning over for security guards to grab Catra by the wrists. She gasped out of shock as large, cold hands gripped her arms roughly, forcing them behind her back. She hissed, turning her head over her shoulder and flashing her fangs, threatening to bite. She did all she could to pull away from the guards, realizing that they were a lot stronger than she looked. Catra knew she could probably take on one of them, but not two, not two who pinned her arms back and rendering her essentially useless. One of the guards suddenly slammed a hand down the center of her back. As she fell forward, a pain surging through her back and diaphragm, Catra tried to twist around and lunge at the guard who had hit her. Instead, she was quickly met with a heavy leather boot kicking her behind her knees, sending her tumbling forward. Face-planting into the tiled floor, she felt a sharp edge cut her into her cheek and before long, she felt hot liquid ooze out and onto the tile. A large hand gripped the back of her neck, pushing her face down and into the small pool of blood that was beginning to form. The sticky liquid found its way into her eye and stung. She hissed again, now trying to shake the guards off of her body. The more hands she felt, the more she fought. Her knapsack was removed from her back, the straps being yanked harshly off of her shoulders. The fabric rubbed against her skin so intensely it left friction burns along her arms. Using her own weapon, a incapacitating shock of electricity shot through her. 

Catra gasped, feeling all of the muscles in her body constrict and tighten in a searing pain she couldn't describe. Everything was so tight and tense, she couldn't move. She could the surge of electricity prickling through her nerves and jumping around over her skin, causing the muscles to spasm ever so slightly. All she could do was blink and scream, drool dripping down from the corner of her mouth as she continued to lay there on the floor. Something hard, cold, and metal were strapped around her wrists, digging into her skin and causing her to wince. She couldn't feel her tail or ears anymore. Catra laid there with her mouth still open, her breath turning into short, ragged gasps. She struggled to breath, her heart palpitating in uneven rhythms. No matter how hard she tried, she couldn't suck any air in and everything came out as a wheeze. She felt like a fish out of water and adrenaline shot through her veins, sending her into a fight-or-flight mode. Being paralyzed, she couldn't act upon either. Large hands picked her up by her arms and lifted her up, off the ground. Her head rolled forward and to the side, the angle cutting off her windpipe even more. Unable to move her head, she silently gaped her mouth open, struggling to even choke. Her body couldn't spasm or twitch like it needed to. Everything felt restricted inside, like her organs were being stabbed. Unable to react the way she needed to, all she could do was hope this would be over soon. The pain simply built up inside, tearing her part. The guards began to drag her toward the back of the room, propping her up against the wall. One of them Catra's head up to let her breathe. 

Sir Elanthor and Robyn made their way over, eyeing Catra up and down. Robyn turned back to the noble. "Five prototypes and one set of Black Garnet tipped arrows," the Magicat offered, the tufts on her ears bobbing around as she moved her head. Sir Elanthor sighed and delicately chewed on their lower rip and shrugged. Catra's ear twitched as she heard the Black Garnet be mentioned. Her eyes searched Robyn and she saw a small, yet incredibly fluffy, brown and white black-striped bobbed tail wagging back and forth behind her feverishly. The long, silky tufts of fur that grew down from her cheeks laid gracefully on her collar bones. "Those arrows are full of magical power that you wouldn't believe. Taken from the Black Garnet itself." She then added. Giving in, Sir Elanthor nodded and shook her hand. 

"Very well, Robyn. You have yourself a deal. I expect to have those weapons here by next week. Do you understand?" They said, finalizing their words. The Magicat nodded excitedly, graciously shaking the noble's hand before picking up Catra and slinging her over her shoulder. Once again, Catra struggled to breathe and she found herself going in and out of consciousness. Eventually, the world around her blacked out.

Waking up, Catra blinked the blurriness from her eyes as she started to look around. Her hands were still tied up behind her back, but the cold metal she had felt earlier was now rope. Observing her surroundings, Catra made out the cylindrical shape of one of the handmade homes that were scattered all over Thaymor. Groaning as her head pounded, Catra struggled to sit up and she saw Robyn sitting across from her, her back against the wall wearing nothing more than a Horde issued tank top and her underwear. The Magicat smiled as her eyes met Catra's.

"How was your nap, hotshot?" She teased, crawling over to Catra from where she was sitting. Catra flinched away, wanting to be as far from this person as possible. She didn't recognize her despite the uniform. She then noticed the blue Horde badge pinned onto the tank's strap. Who ever Robyn was, she was very important to Hordak, much more so than any Force Captain could be or any soldier. Catra swallowed hard, still leaning away. Robyn laughed, grabbing onto Catra's chin and forcing her face to stare directly at hers. "Not too friendly, are you? That's too bad." Robyn laughed, her sweet golden eyes narrowing softly. "You're coming back to the Horde with me!"

Catra pinned her ears back and gasped. 

"N-no.... Did Shadow Weaver send you?" Catra stuttered, panic shooting through her veins. Robyn furrowed her brow and gave Catra a funny look. 

"No? Why would that old hag send me? I don't give two shits about her, anyway. " Robyn retorted with a bit of attitude in her voice. "Your face is plastered all over Etheria. Both the Horde and the Rebellion want you. You didn't know that?"

Catra shook her head, adverting her gaze to the floor. Her stomach flipped and her blood turned to ice. From the corner of her eye, she saw Robyn frown momentarily before laughing. "Everyone is on serious man-hunt for you. If I turn you in, I'll get the largest sum of cash that you couldn't even imagine if you tried!" She laughed, her voice rough and raspy. "I almost feel bad for you since you didn't know. It's a shame you had to find out this way. Hordak wants your head, says you're a major threat to his security and mission. I'm not about to pass that opportunity up."

"Does he know you have parts of the Back Garnet infused with your arrows?" Catra then asked, her mind thinking quickly. Robyn froze, bit her lip and frowned. 

"No, he doesn't. And he isn't going to know," She snapped back, baring pointed teeth at Catra. Out of habit, Catra let out a mrrow of laughter and fell over, her tail wiggling rapidly. 

"He will when I tell him. If you turn me in, your weapon business is over. Come on, stealing the Black Garnet? Selling weapons of mass destruction or magical power to our own enemies? I wonder who is more of a threat here!" Catra exclaimed, breaking out into a fit of hysteria. Robyn growled, preparing herself to hit Catra but thought better of it. Reluctantly, she grabbed onto the rope that bound Catra's arms behind her back. 

"Fine. If I let you go, you'll remain silent about what I do?" She growled. Catra nodded, smiling. 

"My lips are sealed. I'm not going to get in the way of you and your fortune. I just wish to live peacefully on my own. Since you're being honest, I assume, I guess I should as well..." Catra then sighed, feeling Robyn cut the rope off of her wrists. Instantly, Catra began to stretch her arms out every which way, hearing her elbows crack with relief. "I ran off because of Shadow Weaver. After the siege on Sea Worthy, she took me to her lair. She raped me, told me it was because I was fantasizing about... someone." She explained with a sigh, feeling sick again. She never opened up so quickly to a stranger before and she didn't want to do it again. She knew it was out of character, but there was something demanding and intimidating about Robyn that she wasn't willing to miss with. The Magicat shifted uncomfortably, a fang popping out from under lip. Her tufted ears then fell back and she frowned. 

"That's... pretty tragic, Catra. I want out of the Horde, too. That's why I spend my time making all of this weaponry and selling it to Bright Moon. I hope to leave the Horde and live someplace on my won, someplace nice with a lot of land. I get so much money out of doing this, you wouldn't believe. I figured you'd be a nice, quick gimmick, but I'm not about to risk potential millions because I wanted to make a quick buck off of you. I know what you're capable of, though. I've seen it with my own eyes. Let's make a truce. I'll let you go, and you keep me out of your mouth. Deal?" Robyn mewed, almost solemnly. Catra gave her a curt nod and smiled. 

"You have yourself a deal, Pussycat. Why don't we team up for a while? I have no place to go, so I mean, as long as you're willing."

Robyn paused to think about it for a moment. 

"All right. You and I, we'll look out for each other. Just for the time being."


	5. Robyn

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Has been re-written!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Smutty tones toward the end.

Acid burned through her mouth and stinging her lips as Catra stood bent over the railing of a large, grey ship. Wind battered at her hair, sending it flying in all directions and into her mouth, catching on the bile that dribbled out of the corner of her mouth. Her nails were dug into the polished wooden rail, holding herself down. Sea water sprayed her face each time the ship would dip down into a dimple in the water, splashing up along side the sides. Each time Catra felt the ship rock, she was almost sure her lunch would come up again. She was also positive she wouldn't have a throat for much longer given the amount of times she's thrown up since the day she left. A part of her wondered if maybe she was potentially sick with something and just didn't know it. It didn't matter. She couldn't visit a doctor. Being on board the Ulysses was already a huge risk for her to take. The deck was full of Robyn's creepy crew who were all in on her weapon-dealing business. Every single one of them was a potential threat to her life and at any given moment could turn her into the Horde or Rebellion. None of them cared for Catra's life and well-being, just as none of them even cared for Robyn. They were all here for one thing, to make a paycheck off of illegal goods and services. Catra had even recognized a couple of Bright Moon commanders who were responsible for policing the glittery kingdom. Not everyone on the ship had any form of affiliation with the Horde outside of Robyn's hustle. The ship then suddenly rocked forward and Catra had to dig the claws on her feet into the wooden floorboards. 

Everything still felt like it was moving too fast for her, but there wasn't much she could do at this point about it besides follow along. Even though she had access to the entire ship, Catra couldn't help but feel like a prisoner here and felt that she was treated as such otherwise. She didn't care to talk to anyone and kept mostly to herself. She hated ships and the sea almost more than Shadow Weaver, so Catra felt that this was a favorable match-up. Walking along the starboard side, Catra continued to grip tightly as she slowly shuffled her way aft to the stern where Robyn stood overlooking the water on the forecastle deck. She had her hair loose from her usual pony tail and the wind blew it back, out of her face. She had a hard chin but her cheeks and brown bone were soft, which seemed rather stark in comparison to her broad shoulders and hips as well as the muscles that accompanied them on her limbs. There was a slight smile on her face as Catra started to make her way up the ladder to join Robyn overlooking the water they were leaving behind. Not wanting to look totally weak in front of her, she quickly wiped her mouth off with the back of her hand and quickly realized her mistake. Catra had to stop herself from freaking out and wiped her hand off on her leggings, now grossed out by the fact that there was vomit smeared on her clothes. Robyn had already took notice and giggled.

"You're not handling this boat thing too well, are you?" She teased rather playfully, turning her head slightly to look at Catra. Pinning her ears back, Catra rolled her eyes.

"No, no. I am. I'm doing jut fine," She retorted, crossing her arms for a split second before the ship took another steep dive into the water, knocking her off balance. Catra scrambled to grab onto the rail, hanging onto it for dear life while Robyn stood next to her completely unphased by the ship's rocking movement. She snorted in amusement, shaking her head at Catra failing to seem comfortable. Once again, Catra now found herself being humiliated, but she remained quiet about it. Catra pulled herself up and sunk her ails back into the wooden railing. Robyn turned her head back to the sea, still smiling. Catra did the same, trying to figure out what it was that made the bobcat Magicat so relaxed with it all. Deep blue water gushed out rapidly from beneath the rudders, all peaked with foaming white streaks that would trail off and fade into the blue abyss. Swallowing down more bile that came up her throat, Catra decided it would be best to turn away from the water for a while and sat down on the deck, leaning her back against the bulkhead. Robyn's short tail flicked at her. This only upset Catra and she crossed both of her arms over her chest. She didn't need the dealer's friendship or camaraderie and she certainly didn't need her or anyone else's pity. 

Robyn crouched down beside Catra, her clawed hands still on the rail and she smiled sweetly. "Why don't you lay below for a bit and chill out in your cabin? Mine's open if you want to go there, too," she offered with a purr. Catra looked at her thankfully before turning her face into a scowl. 

"I'm fine!" She hissed, turning away. Robyn simply giggled some more, settling down directly beside Catra. She placed a large hand on her thigh and continued to purr.

"You are totally lying!" She laughed, her chest and shoulders heaving with amusement. "You have literal vomit on your pants and you want to sit here and tell me you're fine? Come on, Catra! Pull the foot out of your ass."

Even though the dealer was right, Catra refused to admit it or show any sign of acknowledgement. She'd been on plenty of ships before. The Ulysses was nothing. Catra turned aware, giving Robyn a cold shoulder. Robyn only continued to laugh softly which further upset Catra. Why was everything she did so funny to her? It pissed her off and her face started to turn a bright red and her ears felt hot. The hand on her thigh then made its way to her shoulder, resting on it gently. Robyn wasn't going to let up. 

"Why are you laughing? What's so damn funny?" Catra snapped, turning her head around and giving the dealer a dirty look. Robyn suddenly blushed, a shiny white fang poking out from under her lip. 

"It's just... You're so cute," she purred playfully. "You keep trying to act all big and tough and it just isn't working. Are all Force Captains this childish now?" Robyn teased, really pressing into and pushing Catra's buttons. Her hackles began to rise and she narrowed her eyes at Robyn who still remained unbothered by any of it. It was almost like she wanted Catra to react the way she was and was daring her to. A growl started to rise out of Catra's throat as she scooted away from the bobcat, still pouting, as if it would do anything to help her. Eventually, Robyn did stop laughing, but Catra could feel her golden eyes burning holes into the back of her head as she continued to stare at the former Force Captain. It took everything in Catra and then some to ignore it. Robyn eventually let out a huff and stood up, stepping away from Catra. Seeing as she was now alone, once again pushing away someone who wanted to care for her, Catra frowned. Why did she always have to ruin anything good that came her way. Catra remained sitting there on the castledeck in silence, absorbed in her own pity party until she grew bored of it. 

Catra pulled herself up with help from the railing and took the ladder back down to the main deck and cautiously started to climb her way down the hatch, holding on tightly to each rung as she lowered herself down to the deck below. She wasn't entirely sure if her seasickness was better or worse inside of the ship where she could still feel the rocking and see it around her as furniture reacted to it, but wasn't able to look at the water outside without looking out of a port. Heading forward to the bow, Catra was hoping that maybe Robyn came down here after her little outburst only moments ago. Once Catra reached the bow, she started along the port side of the ship and headed aft once again, reaching the opposite side of the the deck she was just on to scurvy on down the hatch that then led to the deck below. Her cabin wasn't too far off from Robyn's, but it was on the other side near another hatch. Catra cursed the ship and it's exhausting design. She hated having to run around the entire deck just to reach one hatch and then again to another. A large moan came from the ship as the port side began to tip, knocking Catra off balance and sending her tumbling into the bulkhead, hitting her head along its metal exterior. She hissed as she went down, flailing out unsheathed claws in a frail attempt to hold onto something. Her chin hit the floor and her lip got caught in between her teeth. The metallic tang of blood hit her tongue as a sharp pain pierced her lip. Pushing herself up, Catra ran her tongue over her newly inflicted injury to assess it. It was nothing more than a small gash in her flesh that would heal on its own in a matter of a few days. Now she was irritated. 

The ship suddenly rocked back the other way, throwing her forward this time. She caught herself with her forearms and squeezed her eyes shut tight. Her ears started to feel hot with annoyance and all Catra could do was wait it out and hope that no one would see her here on the floor too scared to move. She wasn't sure what would cause such large waves and she wasn't sure if she even wanted to know anyway. She was ready to get off of this ship and abandon her position as Robyn's friend the moment they reached land. On her hands and knees, Catra started to crawl toward the bow to reach the starboard side of the ship where her and Robyn's cabins were located. Every time the ship tipped over one way, Catra would continue to lose her balance and would fall into one direction or the other. Each movement was sharp and steep. Every time the ship would dip port side, she could see through the small ports that lined the bulkheads go completely underwater and then back out again. She was thankful she wasn't out on the main deck anymore, even if it meant tumbling around inside like a pinball. 

"Catra?" Robyn's voice sounded from behind her. Catra suddenly jumped up to her feet before being thrown into a bulkhead again. Robyn held on tight to the ladder and gasped as she watched Catra go down once again. "Shit, hang on." 

Robyn made it down to the deck, nearly losing her balance as the ship went the other way. Catra held her head with her hands, wincing from the throbbing pain that broke out at her temple. Robyn's warm hands suddenly wrapped around her body, holding her in close, as if it couldn't possibly get any worse for Catra. She bit her tongue to stop herself from screaming at Robyn about how she hated hugs and instead did her best to just deal with the situation because it wasn't going to just magically change that very instant. She buried her nose into Robyn's black hair, feeling just how soft it really was against her own skin. She even smelled sweet, unlike anything Catra could possibly describe other than as smelling like Robyn. The only thing she could make out was the hint of salty seawater that flung to her skin and fur. Even softer than her hair was the tufts of fur that grew out from under her hair and down her chin, almost like mutton chops. Catra slowly moved her head so that her nose would then be hidden away under Robyn's cheek fluff. She wanted to rub her head and neck all over her, leaving behind her scent as if it would ward off others from claiming Robyn. Catra was pretty sure that they were the only felines on the ship and thus the only ones to practice such silly behaviors. She didn't care, however, and rubbed her cheek against Robyn's anyway. Robyn let out a squeak and jumped away from Catra, startled by her sudden movement. 

Catra froze, her eyes searching Robyn's face to try and distinguish her emotion. All the bobcat did was stare at her in shock and confusion, wondering what in Etheria had just happened. Catra couldn't tell if she was freaked out by it or not and blushed in either embarrassment or shame, possibly both. Unable to make eye contact any longer, Catra shifted her gaze to the floor as the ship then took another dive forward. Catra braced herself on the ground while Robyn did the same, her own eyes now studying the floor and off of Catra. She felt relieved that she wasn't staring at her anymore, but was now facing the nerves of Robyn's judgement and silence. Gripping her arm, Catra wrapped her tail neatly around her body, feeling small and vulnerable. 

"Catra, listen..." Robyn started with a sigh, her gaze still not meeting Catra's searching eyes. She was clearly uncomfortable and Catra could tell just from the sound of her voice. Dread starting to grip her belly. "I know you didn't mean any harm by that, but I'm just... I don't know..." Her voice trailed off softly and she reached behind her head to scratch at the backside of her ear. Catra cringed, turning her head away and grabbing onto her own arm, wishing the situation would just fade already. Another tooth poked out from under Robyn's lip and the bobcat began to blush, her cheeks turning into a light pink. Catra couldn't help but think she was adorable, the way her ear tufts bobbed around or the way her short tail would wiggle around. Even though Robyn's face hardly seemed to show what she was feeling, every other part of her gave off subtle clues and messages that Catra picked up on all too easily. Even her own scent gave her away and Catra realized that Robyn could probably do the same with her. Knowing that, Catra could feel her heart begin to race ever so slightly and she watched as Robyn's tail began to shake nervously. She was hiding something, but didn't know what. 

Robyn sighed, getting onto her hands and feet and cat-walked her way to the bow. Catra did her best to keep up as she followed behind, not wanting to get caught in another one of the ship's massive dives. Staring at her backside, Catra blushed a bit, finding the way in which her little tail bounced up and down with each step over thick ass muscles to be the cutest thing she had ever seen with her own two eyes. She wondered if Robyn would ever let her pet her tail sometime as it looked just as soft as her cheek-fluff. Making a quick turn, Robyn began to dash forward on all fours to the starboard side of the ship and down the passageway. Catra had to push herself a little bit to keep up. As she neared Robyn, both of the women were then slammed into the bulkhead once again, this time Robyn let out a painful yelp. Catra grabbed onto her arm and dragged the bobcat into her cabin. Catra struggled to get the door open at first, but eventually forced her way in. Robyn was scrambling to get up to her feet but was unable to do so with the amount of force Catra was using to quickly drag her across the deck. Using all of her strength, Catra then pulled Robyn into her bunk and pulled her in close to her chest. 

"Are you okay?" Catra asked softly, running her hands through Robyn's long black hair. The Magicat nodded and smiled, her cheeks still pink with blush. Catra let out a sigh of relief, pressing her forehead against Robyn's and purred slightly. Her heart quickened in her chest, pounding hard against her breastbone. She couldn't remember a time feeling this close to someone. She hardly knew Robyn, but a part of her didn't care. The bobcat looked at her gentle eyes, her triangular pink nose twitching happily. She reached up and ran a finger over Catra's lip where she had bit herself a few minutes ago. Catra closed her eyes, allowing herself to give into the sensual feeling of it. She never let anyone touch her like this, but something in her told her to let it happen. The ship groaned as the women then found themselves being lunged to the side. Catra kept a firm hold on Robyn, caressing her cheek and running a thumb over her cheek fluff. She leaned forward, pressing her nose to Robyn's muzzle and smiled. Her heart roaring in her ears with excitement. Catra found herself wishing it was Adora in her arms, but with a deep breath, she let it go. Robyn's hand moved from Catra's like to her own cheek now, her fingers rubbing against her grey ear tufts that remained from her liver coat. The purr in her throat grew louder. It had been so long since someone touched her gently like that. She was so used to Shadow Weaver being the one to caress her. Letting nature take over, she started to rub her cheek along Robyn's hand. 

A much deeper purr came from Robyn as she then closed her own eyes, beginning to rub her chin along Catra's hand. They did this for a few heartbeats before Robyn started to make the first move, being the bigger of the two. She pushed her palms down on Catra's shoulders, forcing her back down into the bunk. A small gasp escaped her lips as Robyn did so, pressing her muzzle to Catra's mouth and kissing her. Catra kissed back, making it deeper each time their lips parted and came together again. In seconds, her wants were travelling all over Robyn's body, reaching for the base of her tank. The dealer didn't stop her exploring hands and instead helped Catra to pull it off, revealing just how top-heavy she really. Kissing down her neck, Catra found the taste of her skin to be just as sweet as the way she smelled and rather addicting. Robyn held Catra close to her chest, her hands behind her back to support her as her lips made their way down to Robyn's deep collarbones. She ran her tongue over the both of them, feeling Robyn's skin shudder. Catra continued to mouth her way down, kissing the top of Robyn's breasts. The bobcat slowly put Catra back down, letting her slip off her sports bra so Catra could continue on her journey, gently sucking on her soft skin and leaving her mark. Delicate moans came from Robyn as Catra continued, her body feeling hot and flushed. She wasn't sure what she was doing but had no intention of stopping any time soon. Robyn pulled back, straddling Catra's hips and wiggling her butt around on her lap. Catra's face turned a deep red, watching Robyn move like that on top of her. With a wink, Robyn then pulled her hair back into her usual ponytail, keeping it from falling into her face. Catra started to slide her hands up Robyn's waist, holding her directly above the hips along her flank. 

Seemingly more comfortable, Robyn started to pry Catra's body suit off and tossed it to the side, leaving her in nothing but her underwear. Looking away, Catra wasn't sure how comfortable she was with anything seeing her body, not after what had happened with Shadow Weaver. She closed her eyes tight, feeling Robyn beginning to nibble gently along her neck and collar bones, nipping at the base of her ears on occasion. It felt like little sparks of electricity started to run through her body, exciting her. Something in her core seemed to tingle, much like how it did during her fantasies. Ultimately, she was terrified of what was happening, but made herself sit through it anyway, reminding herself that Robyn wasn't going to hurt her. The bobcat placed her mouth around one of Catra's breasts, licking her nipple with a tongue that was much rougher that her own. Catra moaned at the sensation, wrapping her hands around Robyn's head and holding her there. Robyn continued to purr, her little tail wiggling back and forth happily. Blocking out the rocking of the ship as much as she possibly could, Catra felt Robyn was a nice distraction from it all. She started to ease into what would soon become the night. Moving rather quickly, Robyn's muzzle started to trail further down Catra's stomach, gently graving over the line of thick fluff that split her belly. Gasping, something inside of her seemed to grip her chest and pierce her lugs. Catra's blood instantly turned to ice and she was wide awake again, quickly demolishing what was about to become a steamy evening. She scrambled from underneath Robyn, the bobcat's eyes going wide as she jerked back. Catra felt her stomach tighten and she felt as though she was suffocating suddenly. She felt Robyn ease off of her as her claws sunk into the sheets, tearing holes into the surface and pulling out threads in a panicked fit to get her clothes back on. 

"Woah, woah, woah! What's happened?" Robyn exclaimed, her eyes going wide with worry. Catra hardly heard her, her mind set on retrieving her bodysuit that lay in a crumpled mess on the floor. Robyn's eyes flickered around the room, searching for sign of what was going on. Catra wasn't entirely sure herself and picked up the maroon outfit and struggled to slip it on over her skin which was now hotter than normal and starting to become slick with sweat. "Catra, what's wrong?" Robyn asked again, placing a large hand on Catra's shoulder.

"Get off of me!" Catra hissed, shrinking back away from Robyn. The boat lurched to the side, knocking her off of her feet just as she had finally gotten her bodysuit above her hips. Hitting the floor with a thud, Catra groaned, feeling the bite in her lip reopen and begin to bleed again. The taste in her mouth had never felt so disgusting before. Despite being on the floor, nearly fully clothed once again, she felt as though it were nearly impossible to move, as if there was something heavy on her chest trying to prevent her from breathing. Tears started to well up in her eyes, stinging them as if she was crying out salt water. As she started to sob, her cries were high pitched and wheezy, forced out of her with each breath she took. Robyn had lost her balanced as well, catching her fall by reaching out for the bunk in front of her. Catra crawled over toward the nearest bulkhead, slamming her back down against its metal surface. She didn't even care how badly it felt against her scapulas. With the support from the bulkhead, she managed to shimmy the rest of her bodysuit suit on and fasten it up. The suffocating feeling didn't go away and she had to do everything in her power to stop herself from screaming out. Her saliva glands working overtime, drool slipped out from the corner of her mouth, mixing with the blood that trailed off of her lip. Robyn sat down at the edge of her bunk, her ears pinned back as she stared at Catra. 

_Quit looking at me! _Catra thought angrily to herself, snapping her head away from the sailor. She wanted to get back to her own cabin, but was too afraid to move at this point. The ship clearly wasn't going to stop any time soon. Robyn slowly started to move, climbing down and over to Catra. She leaned up against the bulkhead, her furry skin bristling along Catra's. Catra could smell the fear scent that came off of the bobcat and screwed up her face. Why wasn't she listening? Why was she the one that was scared? A warm hand fell onto Catra's upper arm.__

__

__"Catra, please. Calm down. It will be okay-" Her voice was soft and sweet, very different from how it normally was. It lacked everything that Catra was beginning to know Robyn for. It wasn't rough or harsh, hardly raspy even. Catra flinched, gritting her teeth, her heart pounding like waves against a cliffside during a storm. "Catra, I'm sorry. I never meant to hurt you. I- I-..." Her voice sounded broken, weak, even pathetic. Catra closed her eyes and winced, tossing her head back and sucking in a deep breath of air. Her lungs screamed at her, begging her to exhale. The sound of gentle sobbing made her ears twitched and Robyn's fear scent only grew stronger, eventually being the only thing she could smell aside from her own bloody lip. Robyn's hand fell lazily off of her arm and she curled up next to Catra, pulling her knees up and into her chest. Catra wasn't sure what was going on as it was all moving so fast, almost as if it were in a giant blur. Something in her propelled her to lean down against Robyn, her head gently resting on the older woman's shoulders. She still had a delicate smell to her fur, a romantic musk that Catra herself was all too familiar with. Trying to swallow down the copious amounts of thick saliva that formed in her mouth and throat, Catra forced herself to hold onto Robyn._ _

__

__"I-it's o-okay,"Catra stuttered out, her voice wheezing. The two sat there for what felt like forever, crying and struggling to breathe until Robyn was able to calm herself down and even a longer while later, Catra could begin to breathe again, although not very efficiently. Her chest was still aching and hurting and she felt as though any minute she could fall asleep. Robyn slowly moved to put her long arm around Catra, pulling her in close to a very delicate and sensual hug._ _

__

__Robyn sniffled, wiping the tears out of her eyes and off the soft fur that laddened her face. She looked at Catra and weakly smiled, rubbing her chin and cheek against Catra's very own. 'I wasn't thinking about what I was doing. I forgot what you told me the other day about why you left the Horde... I should have been more mindful of that." She admitted with what sounded like a meaningful, genuine sigh. "Gosh, I feel so stupid. I don't even know what came over me. I haven't acted this way since I was a teenager." Catra listened to her words intently, thinking over it all inside of her head very analytically._ _

__

__"You? In the Horde? But that's-"_ _

__

__"I know, I know. You'd be amazed at what goes on in the shower rooms," she purred playfully. "So much you can get away with." As Robyn spoke, Catra couldn't help but to blush, thinking of all of the times she used to try and sneak peaks at Adora through the small cracks in the stalls or even the times the two did shower together when the rooms were a little crowded. Catra never really thought much of the situation, mostly because they were comfortable with one another and had always been rather open to each other about it. Despite this, there was always something usual that would peak Catra's interest in seeing her former friend, quite possibly the vivid fantasies that plagued her mind. A part of her felt comforted hearing that she wasn't the only one to feel this way about others._ _

"Really? I never really thought you'd be that kind of person," Catra purred in response, her voice still weak and coarse. Robyn let out a small _mrow _of laughter, her chest heaving. She shook her head as a small smile crept onto her face.__

__"Really. I was a bit of a flirt- I mean, I still am- back then, more so than now. I was given most of the night shifts in my youth, so shower time before work? Definitely. That died down quite a bit the older I got, the easier it was for me to also control my heats..." She explained, her face blushing in embarrassment. Catra nodded in understanding, her ears perking up slightly. She didn't know many other magicats or anyone else that was remotely feline up until she met Robyn. She was calming down with each passing second, just listening to her new friend talk about her life and her own experiences. Doing so also gave Catra a chance to look back on and reflect on what had happened, why she reacted the way she did. She wasn't particularly attracted to Robyn in any way and really had no interest in mating with her. In the moment, she guess it just felt right, but looking back on it now, it didn't. Even if it did, it didn't matter. Everything she experienced in her panic make her feel like she was back in the Horde, back in Shadow Weaver's lair, stretched out on the cot. A chill went up her spine and she pushed the thought away, replacing it instead with the way she and Adora used to stay up late at night whispering to one another and the heart felt stories and secrets they shared. She smiled, welcoming the happier memories flood over her for once. Catra let a small purr rumble out of her throat, not realizing that Robyn was still talking._ _

__"Hey Robyn," she started, giving the bobcat's cheek an affectionate lick. She smiled, happy that her new friend was respectful of her space and her body, as well as just simply pleased for her companionship. "I'm really worn out from all of that crying. Do you think that maybe we could just... cuddle for now? I'm not comfortable doing much more than that and I can't promise I ever will be." She said softly, feeling like the words were stuck in her throat. She forced the words out despite this. Robyn's cheeks turned a light pink as she smiled, kindness shone in her golden eyes._ _

__"Yeah, we can do that."_ _


	6. A Dawning Era

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> This chapter takes a first look into Robyn's past, which will be scattered about here and there through the story to help show her character and her origins. As a reminder, abuse of power is one of the topic tags and this chapter can make some readers feel somewhat uncomfortable. There's no gore, no smut, and nothing graphic in this chapter at all, however.

"Give it up now, Octavia!" Robyn growled, a mischievous smirk painted across her face. The young sea-elf tossed her head back and laughed, her chest bellowing. Robyn clutched the staff in her hands tight, her fingers clenched around the metal pole aching. Octavia moved quickly, lashing out her own staff at Robyn, slamming it against her arm as she deflected it with a hiss. Robyn spun around on her heels, swinging out her staff at her glue-green friend. As if she was anticipating it, Octavia jumped out of the way, rolling the second as she hit the ground out of Robyn's way. The move took Robyn by surprise. It was new and she admired her opponents quick thinking. Suddenly, something hit Robyn behind the knees and she fell forward, catching her fall with her hands on the hex-floors beneath her. The green tile flashed red, sending a bolt of panic surging through Robyn. From the corner of her eye, she saw Octavia back up on her feet and readying herself for the next blow. With a gasp, Robyn half-scrambled half-rolled out of Octavia's reach and onto another hex tile. On her hands and knees, she watched as this tile quickly changed to the fateful color as the last. Robyn knew if she didn't get up soon, she would be screwed. Octavia was faster, her staff smashing into Robyn's side and knocking the breath out of her. Ribs aching, Robyn landed on the next tile over, her chin hitting the ground so hard it shook her teeth. 

"No, you give it up, Robyn!" Octavia's voice taunted loudly over her. She could sense the sea-elf towering beside her, preparing her final blow into Robyn's back. Along her armor was a digital target, one on the front and one on the back. The second that screen was hit, the simulation would be over and one of them will come out victorious. Just as Octavia went to stab Robyn's target, the bobcat quickly rolled over and onto her back, now exposing the target on her chest. Her hands clutched the end of Octavia's staff a mere few inches away from her target, her muscles screaming as she resisted. Robyn started to grit her teeth together, doing what she could to block out the pain. As a deep, ear piercing yowl emerged from her throat, splitting the air, she pushed back up against the staff, breaking Octavia's hold on it and jabbing it into her chest. The red 'X' that marked a cadet out never appeared despite the buzzer going off, sounding Octavia's elimination and marking her defeat. A loud cracking sound soon followed as the staff broke through the screen, slamming the sea-elf directly into the center of her diaphragm and sending the sea-elf flying backwards as she gasped for air. Robyn laid on the floor, clenching her ribs with her hand, groaning in pain. The hex tiles all quickly fade to black before a ringer signaled the end of the simulation. 

The sound of running footsteps thundered in Robyn's large ears, causing them to twitch angrily as she continued to lay on the floor writhing in pain. Large, scaly hands wrapped around her upper arms and began to pull her up to her feet. Robyn let out a roar of pain, baring her teeth as who ever was touching her. 

"Robyn, knock it off. You're fine. We'll get you to Shadow Weaver shortly," said a deep, raspy voice. Robyn nodded her head, wincing as the large scaly hands bumped where she had been hurt. On her feet, the bobcat turned, still holding onto her side. "Let me have a look." 

Hands still on her, Robyn nodded again and slowly lifted her arms above her head. The large hands, scaly and red with a streak of brilliant blue running up the backsides quickly and effortlessly unbuckled the training armor and dropped it to the floor. Robyn stared at the red snake man's scaly face as his eyes started to search her body, his cold hands lifting her tank-top over her head and over her arms, removing it completely. The feeling of the fabric brushing against her bruised side caused her to react with another hiss, her small bobbed tail wagging feverishly behind her in pain. The snake man paid no attention to her cues, ignoring them as if she wasn't injured. He got down on his knees to get a better look at her side, running his rough fingertips over her rib cage sending painful pulses to her brain and a chill up her spine that made her hackles rise. Tossing her head back, she clenched together and squeezed her eyes shut. His hands were now lifting up the side of her sports bra. The elastic fabric dug into her skin around her bruises, making everything even worse. The snake man wasn't saying anything and just remained silent. The sound of light whispering, too gentle for Robyn to pick up, sent her mind wandering into how humiliated she felt. As if it couldn't get any worse, the snake man started to tug her bra up and over her head and arms before tossing it to the ground with the shirt. Robyn's skin felt hot and she continued to keep her eyes closed, afraid of all of the other cadet's eyes on her. With her stomach bare and her breasts now exposed for everyone to see, she vulnerable and weak, as if she had lost this battle simulation. She didn't know how Octavia was faring and didn't dare to find out. The cold, scaly hands gently ran under one of her breasts and lifted it up with a thumb, the throbbing pain shooting through her once again as the fingers on another hand brushed along the front of her rib cages. 

"That hurts!" She hissed, tensing up her thighs. The snake man let out a sigh, moving his hands to the side as she stopped probing her wound. Robyn opened an eye, peaking down to the red snake man and seeing the determination and concern on his normally stone-cold face. He flicked his forked tongue, his yellow gaze shifting from her side to her face and he gave Robyn a soft smile. Robyn crinkled up her nose, trying her best to to hold back tears that threatened to emerge from her glassy eyes. "Are you done, Rattlor? Can I please go see Shadow Weaver now?"

Rattlor didn't say anything for what felt like the longest time to Robyn. He just kept smiling, his expression changing into one that was more of worry than anything else. He kept a large hand on her forearm as he let out a deep, hefty sigh. 

"Actually, I think it's better if you stay with me. I didn't realize how bad this was," he started, his yellow eyes returning to her bruised ribs as his smile completely faded. As other Force Captain filed into the training room to shoo the other cadets away, the groaning of Octavia not too far off caught her attention. Robyn wanted to turn around to see what she did to her, to see what her damages were, but any movement hurt and her arms were beginning to go numb from being held up for too long. Dropping them onto the top of her head, Rattlor stood up beside her, bending down to grab her clothes. "Stay here, I'll be right back."

Rattlor's long, thick tail swayed from side-to-side as Robyn watched the muscular snake man begin to walk away, leaving her in the training room alone. Unsure of what to do, she started to slowly lower her arms back down, using them to cover her exposed chest. Her left side throbbed, especially now with the weight of her arms pressing down against her. She waited patiently, her blood as cold as ice and her skin now feeling like it could melt from how hot she was getting otherwise. Aside from the searing pain, her head was a little airy and light, making her feel a bit off balance. Rattlor wasn't gone for very long and came back with a red towel to throw over her shoulders. Robyn smiled lightly as she held either end of the towel closed around her body with the arm that wasn't rubbing against her ribs tightly. He placed a hand gently on her shoulder and led her out of the room, carrying her shirt in his opposite hand. Robyn was feeling a little humiliated, knowing that her Force Captain and trainer had now seen her partially naked, her stomach twisting and turning around inside as if it was still fighting. Keeping her head low as she walked, she was at least grateful he wasn't making a big deal about it which helped make her feel a little more comfortable about the given situation. 

Rattlor took Robyn to a small, floating platform that could maybe three large individuals on it and took it up two levels from where the training grounds were. She knew Rattlor's room was here on this higher floor, but had never actually been inside. Anticipation prickled through her skin as she wasn't entirely sure what to expect. She wasn't entirely sure why she wasn't seeing Shadow Weaver for help or seeking out one of the Horde medics. Rattlor remained quiet the entire duration, his face returning close to his normal blank expression as he kept his piercing yellow eyes focused on the floor. Robyn didn't say a word either, feeling too worked up and anxious over the entire ordeal. As the platform reached his floor, Rattlor helped Robyn step off and began to lead her down a dark, narrow hallway. Most of the lights were burnt out and the walls were much closer together than they were in the Cadet Barracks. Never having been in the living quarters, a chill went down her spine and the fur along it stood up. She could feel her tail fluffing out and twitching behind her. Her eyes flicked around the hallway nervously, passing by door after door, many unmarked and nameless. Three-fourths of the way down, Rattlor stopped at a scratched up door with his name on it. It was now so dark in this part of the hallway, she knew that the only reason she could read the writing was from her night vision ability. Using his large thumb, Rattlor jabbed his claw into the key pad. A small green light on the piece of technology lit up and a loud clicking sound emitting from it caused Robyn's ears to jerk back unexpectedly. 

His room opened up to a somewhat spacious area, much larger than she was expecting. Flipping on the light switch beside the door, Rattlor lead Robyn in and closed it gently behind her. Robyn blinked a few times, impatiently waiting for her eyes to readjust to the newer and much brighter light that shone a soft yellowish white from the ceiling. Looking around the room, she made out that he had his own private bathroom attached on the right-side of the room, next to another door that was closed. Assuming it was a closet, her eyes wandered to the other side where a large, comfortable looking bed was pushed up against the walls in the far left corner of the room, horde issued sheets neatly made without a single wrinkle in the navy blue fabric. Next to the bed was a dingy metal desk, complete with a matching worn-out metal stool and piles upon piles of paper work and manila folders stacked up in perfected towers. A medium-sized screen was built into the wall opposite of the bed, a wooden table as long as the bed was wide was located at the foot. Atop it was a remote control, a charging stun baton, a couple of novels, and a small prickly plant she didn't recognize. Robyn soon noticed that there were a few of the prickly plants in the room as well as a couple of pictures on the wall of a young Rattlor and people she assumed where his family. The clicking of the closet door caught her attention as Rattlor stepped inside, tucking on a string to turn on another light bulb to light the room. It was much larger inside than she anticipated, although not wide, it was incredibly deep. Curiosity got the best of her and she followed him in, wanting to know what was inside. Rattlor gasped, her tail sticking straight up in the air. 

"Robyn, out!" He hissed, flashing large, shiny white fangs at the cadet. The young bobcat flinched and hesitantly stepped out of the room, watching him with prying eyes as Rattlor moved about, pushing around what looked like small shipping containers, cardboard boxes, and over various storage units. She didn't realize how much stuff her Force Captain had. He always seemed like a very simply man, keeping the bare minimum of what he needed and taking no extra. This closet proved otherwise. It was so cluttered yet organized in a chaotic fashion with junk, she wondered if he was a secret hoarder. Before she could answer her own thoughts, Rattlor stepped out of closet with a large metal frame and set it up near his bed before heading back in to pull out a crusty blue mattress and a clean set of sheets. Robyn frowned, wanting to head back to her barracks for the night. She appreciated what he was trying to do for her, but it didn't feel right. 

"Rattlor, don't you think I should go see a medic?" She questioned, watching him fit the sheets onto the cot. The snake man ignored her for a few heart beats, no expression showing on his reptilian face. He almost looked calm to her, content with life. His sweet demeanor made her nervous and on-edge and she began to wonder if it would be alright for her to leave the room on her own terms. "I don't mean to be rude or question your judgement, Force Captain Rattlor, I just-"

"Nonsense. You're going to see a medic. I'm just going to have you stay here otherwise. Things have been a little strange down at the infirmary lately since Lord Hordak opened that portal a week ago. A lot of soldiers are falling ill and even dying. I just don't want you caught up in that. As for Shadow Weaver, I forgot she's been nurturing a baby that came through," he explained calmly with a sigh as he finished up with making the cot. "You can sleep in my bed if you'd like. I'd rather you be more comfortable, but the hard mattress is what you prefer or makes it easier on you, that's fine, too. Have you ever slept in a soft bed before?" He then asked. Robyn felt a lump form in her throat, almost choking her. She had never seen him act this friendly and her gut was telling her not to trust him. She slowly shook her head, readjusting her fingers over her towel. Rattlor smiled sweetly and hopped onto the cot, the wooden frame shaking and squeaking under his weight. "That's okay. Tonight can be your first night then."

Slowly walking over, Robyn sat down on his bed, feeling her large, muscled thighs sink into the soft mattress. It felt nice, despite the cushion-like feeling, there was still enough firmness inside to support her and feel incredibly comfortable. She wish she had the words to speak, but her brain felt too boggled and fried to think of anything at this point. Rattlor extending one long arm over to the table that was at the foot of his bed and grabbed the remote. Pressing a red button at the top, the screen turned on and flickered the usual green bars that appeared on all Horde screens. Robyn watched him cautiously, her ears erect atop her head. Rattlor smashed his thumb down onto another button and the screen quickly turned into a dial-up, a tiny red light appearing at the bottom center of it all. In the right-hand corner of the screen, she could both herself and her Force Captain in a tiny box as they were being recorded. Eventually, someone picked up and on the screen, a dark-skinned human with green and gold streaked hair appeared. A dark green mask covered the bottom of their mouth and Robyn could see piercings lined up on either side of the person's head, flashing about next to the colored hair that was pulled back into a long pony-tail. 

"Force Captain Rattlor! What's going on?" The other person spoke, his voice friendlier than most of those who lived in the Fright Zone. Rattler smiled, waving at the medic. 

"Goof Evening, Doctor Chance! I have a Cadet here who broke a handful of ribs in training today. They're worse than I expected them to be and they're pretty deep. Do you think you or one of your guys could come take a quick look?" Rattlor asked, his voice pleasant and sweet. Robyn watched silently as the two men chatted about how the injury happened and the way it looked according to Rattlor. Every so often, Dr. Chance would ask her a question or two, his grey eyes unblinking and uncomfortable to stare at, especially behind the cotton mask that covered the lower half of his face. 

"So here's what's going to happened," Dr. Chance started, his eyes flicking from one to the other. "Robyn, we're going to have Rattlor bring you back down to the infirmary for x-rays in about... Oh, let's say fifteen minutes. We're going to disinfect the area, change into different gear, and get a safe pathway from the main door to the x-ray lab. We're noticing that a highly contagious virus of some sort is spreading through a lot of the soldiers who were originally mixed up and breathed in particles from the portal that recently opened. We don't want others to get it, because it is lethal, and I'm not saying this to scare you. I just want you aware of why everything is as strange as it is. You'll be okay. We'll also have you guys wear masks when you come in and make sure you wash your hands when you leave. The second you get back to Rattlor's room, both of you need to shower just to make sure any particles are washed off. Okay?" He explained. Robyn blinked, fear now spiking through her body and making her feel dizzier than she already was. She gave Rattlor a quick uncomfortable glance and nodded. Did she really have much choice in the matter? 

Robyn felt more relaxed after visiting the infirmary and showering off. Rattlor had given her one of his large, beat-up shirts to wear around his room. She opened up one of the novels he had on the table a few minutes ago, reading it while he showered. Nothing about it seemed really all that interesting. It was on some mythical warrior known as "She-Ra" and how she was to save Etheria from destruction. She snorted in amusement, almost flabbergasted that her Force Captain would be reading such silly nonsense. It almost seemed like a children's book with how incredibly unrealistic it was. She wasn't even sure where he got this book as things like this weren't generally allowed into the Fright Zone. The bathroom door suddenly opened and Rattlor stepped out, a towel wrapped around his waist. He didn't make any kind of eye contact with Robyn as he went back into his closet, closing the door behind him to put some fresh clothes on. In boxers and another beat-up shirt, he walked over to the cot and at down, the metal squeaking once again. Robyn flinched at the sound, causing pain to shoot through her ribcage and she hissed. 

"Sorry, I don't know how to get it to stop," Rattlor sighed, pulling up his muscled legs off of the floor as it creaked beneath him. Something about it seemed off and before Robyn could question in, the metal frame gave out underneath him. Rattlor and the mattress fell straight to the ground like a heavy sand bag in a crashing, ear-splitting tumble. "Ah, shit!" He snapped, rolling off of the cot and dragging the mattress aside. Robyn bit her lip, stifling a laugh that threatened to escape from her lips. Rattlor furrowed his scaly brows, cursing quiety to himself as he got up and kicked the now broken frame aside, the metal scraping across the concrete floor. Robyn's ears flew back and she winced again. "I'm sorry about that. I didn't realize how shitty anything the Horde offers us is!" He growled. Robyn was a little shocked with his sudden outburst and critique of the Horde. She never knew he of all people would dis it in such a manner. 

"Rattlor, do you just want sleep next to me? Your bed is big enough for the two of us. I'd feel bad if you had to sleep on the floor. I could sleep there, too. I don't mind," she blurted out. A part of her hoped he would decline and say he was content to stay on the floor, but instead he smiled and nodded. 

"Yeah, we could do that. I don't mind it one bit as long as you're comfortable with it." 

_Why is he being so friendly? This is incredibly weird. I'm not sure how I feel about any of this. ___

__Rattlor made his way over and Robyn scooted over to one side of the bed, wincing as it felt like her side was being stabbed. Her ribs had broken in a hole-like shape from the end of the staff , causing various fractures around not only the side, but the front as well. Rattlor crawled into bed next to her, taking up a little bit more space than she realized, but she still had enough room to sleep comfortably as long as he didn't spread out or accidentally pushed her off the side of the bed. He laid down on his back, crossing his legs out in front of him and tucking his huge arms behind his head. He gazed at Robyn softly and smiled. Her fur prickled along her skin again and she forced out a weak smile._ _

__"Rattlor, I have to ask. Why are you doing all of this? It's... not like you." She asked warily, her tail shaking. Rattlor flicked his forked tongue and nodded, understanding where she was coming from._ _

__"Okay, well, if I'm going to be honest with you," he started, looking away. His red cheeks took on a slight rosy hue. Was he blushing? "You're my favorite Cadet. Out of all of the ones I've trained, not one of them have the same passion or goofiness that you have. And there's been something I've been wanting to talk to you about for a long while, but I never really had the time to bring it up. Now that you're on rest for two-months, I figured that this would be a good time to talk about it." He explained, turning back to her and shrugging. Robyn's ears fell back against her head._ _

___He isn't... into me, is he? _She wondered, looking at him with wide, uncomfortable eyes. Nothing about this felt right at all, alarms went off in her head telling her to run.__ _ _

____"We can talk about it more in the morning, after breakfast. Okay? You've had a long day and I want you to get some decent sleep tonight. Let me know if you want to take anything for it," He yawned, pulling out the top sheets from underneath him. Robyn slowly moved to slide under them as well, carefully laying down on the healthy side of her body, leaning away from Rattlor. She could feel him spoon around her, his hand placed softly on her hip. Her breathing and heart rate quickened for a few minutes, chewing on her lower lip. Another part of her almost enjoyed his company, and she couldn't help but feel a warm sensation in her chest as she thought of the way the brave Force Captain said she was his favorite and even complimented her. She knew they weren't supposed to pick favorites or give out special treatment, but after being outcasted from the other Cadets so much, struggling to be their friend, it felt nice to be favorite. Two tiny fangs poked out underneath her top lip as she smiled to herself, thinking about how none of the other cadets- not even Octavia- were being treated with such kindness or being spoiled for being injured. She knew Rattlor well and told herself to trust him, to trust that he wouldn't hurt her or try anything. He never had before. Being careful to not cause herself to hurt too much more and not to wake up the snake man as he drifted off into sleep already, she carefully wiggled herself closer to him, propping her back up against his cool body and using him as a support. It took some of the pressure off of her ribs, making it easier for her to not only breathe, but feel comfortable._ _ _ _

_____Maybe someday he and I will rule the Horde together... side by side... After I graduate from Cadet training, of course. I'd get to look down and spit upon my troop. They would have to answer to me! _The thoughts of the future made her feel warm and fuzzy inside, thoughts of her and her mentor someday calling the shots side-by-side as equals. She liked the pampering and she liked the special treatment. She liked Rattlor and she liked the thought of looking down upon her fellow Cadets, making them clean up after her as she sat around the high table with Rattlor, maybe even as Hordak's right-hand man. Of course, she would need to get rid of Shadow Weaver first, but it wasn't like she particularly cared for the sorceress anyway. Everything seemed simpler before the rejected woman came over to the Horde from Mystacor. She didn't care that Shadow Weaver had managed to forge a connection to the Black Garnet, could curse her until the day she died, or perform any kind of magic for that matter. She was an outsider and she was a threat to the Horde and the Horde's mission. A bitter taste formed in her mouth the more she thought of Shadow Weaver. Now she was taking care of a baby? An alien baby? A part of her felt bad for the child, having to be raised by such a vile and disgusting creature that the sorceress was. Robyn started to wonder if Rattlor would know how to take care of a baby. He was an amazing mentor and Cadet trainer, certainly he could raise a baby, no? Did he even like babies? He seemed to speak of it fondly at least.__ _ _ _ _

______As random thoughts continued to swirl through her mind, her body began to feel heavy and pulled down by gravity into the mattress, her head on the soft pillow feeling as though it where laying on a cloud. Unable to fight it off, she soon lulled into sleep._ _ _ _ _ _


	7. Imprisoned

As dim yellow lights flickered overhead illuminating the dark cabin in a soft glow, Catra found herself tossing and turning every which way in the bunk, Robyn sleeping soundly beside her as if nothing was going on. The rough seas during the day had only continued to increase into the late evening and night, rough winds rocking the ship side-to-side with heavy drops of rain splattering the main decks and ports. As the large drops of water pattered against the ship, giant waves slammed into the sides in deafening roars. Her stomach tossed and turned with the boat and she held her breath to keep her stomach contents from coming up again. Clutching onto the blanket that covered her and Robyn, she squeezed her eyes shut to try to block out what was happening around her. A part of her had almost wished she had been returned to the Horde to be executed. Suddenly, loud, heavy banking on the door to Robyn's cabin startled Catra and made her jump, waking up the sleeping magicat beside her. Robyn blinked her weary eyes, inaudible nonsense sputtering out of her muzzle as she started awaking. Slightly turning her head to look at Catra, she looked at her in slight confusion as the knocking returned and prompted her to get up and move. Robyn stumbled as the ship lurched one way and then to the next, the lights continuing to flicker on and off without any rhyme or reason. Catra watched Roblyn closely as her friend opened the door. A bright pink sea-elf with an eye-patch, magenta braids and a variety of piercings around her lips and brow-ridge stood, a blank expression across her face. 

"If you haven't already noticed, there's a large storm brewing outside and it appears we're heading straight for the center of it," the pink sea-elf reported, her teal eye shifting from Robyn to Catra. Catra's ears fell back nervously as the sea-elf narrowed her eye in a slight scowl at Catra before returning her attention back to Robyn who was holding herself up against the door frame, resting her shoulder up against it "Our arrival at Salineas might take a little longer than we would like." 

Robyn simply nodded, her head moving up and down slowly as she remained silent. Catra continued to keep her eyes on her, doing her best to avoid the sea-elf's wandering and judging gaze. She took notice in the fact that Robyn's usual body language was essentially non-existent. Her tail hadn't twitched once and her ears never moved. Even the muscles around either of these areas failed to tense up or shake with intent. Catra was already feeling nervous to begin with from the ship, but now that was being heightened. Her hackles began to raise steadily and she ran her hands across her tail slowly to at least keep some part of her flattened. She had no idea if Robyn was just trying to play it cool or if she was too tired, or maybe even unsure. She had always seemed so confident in her navigation abilities. Still leaning against the door, Robyn placed one hand on her hip and dipped her head down and to the side, a small fang popping out over her bottom lip as Catra saw her chew on it in thought. 

"Let me guess," Robyn started, her voice calm and dark, deeper than it normally was. Her yellow eyes continued to focus on the ground as she rasped her fingers against the door frame. "The energy on the ship is running low and no one here has any idea on what to do about?" Robyn turned her head to look back at the sea-elf whose finned ears shifted downwards in shock, taking a small step back and nodded.

"Y-yes, Captain. Quite frankly, none of us are entirely sure what to do. We don't have enough fuel to power us through the storm and get us to Salineas," she explained with a frown. Robyn cocked her head to the side and let out a long, drawn-out sigh. 

"Go figure," she growled quietly, pushing into the frame as the boat lurched once again, sending the sea-elf stumbling. Catra had to stifle a laugh as she watched her struggle to stay on her feet. "Catra, I'm going to have to head up to the main deck and get this shit under control. Why don't you come up with us?" Robyn offered, her voice incredibly monotone. Catra cringed at the thought of being on the main deck during such a harsh storm, but the look on Robyn's face told her that this was an order, not the offer she hoped it was. Gulping, she nodded. 

"Yeah, sure. Whatever. I can do that," She mewed cooly before getting up and walking over to where the other women were standing before following them out into the passageway. Catra kept her hand on the bulkhead nearest to her as the three of them began to snake their way through the ship, falling into the bulkheads with each movement. Catra was beginning to lose count of the bruises she was receiving from bashing into the metal walls. By the time they made it to the deck above, Catra was finding herself needing to unsheath her claws to dig them into bulkheads just to keep balance. As a result, streaks of deep scratches were felt behind. 

Eventually, all three of the women managed to scramble up the last ladder and clambered onto a slippery wet deck. Rain beaded up against Catra's hair, sliding down it quickly before falling onto the wooden deck below. She slide the claws out on her toes, sinking them into the soggy wood to help keep balance. Feeling worried about others noticing her inabilty to travel aboard like the others, Catra kept close proximity to Robyn as she followed her into a cabin located underneath the upper deck. As she walked behind Robyn, she couldn't help but to look down at her own feet, seeing the sailor sinking her own foot claws into the wood as she walked confidently with her chin up. The cabin was small and had a cozy feel to it, almost looking like the inside of a commercial ship one could buy in Seaworthy- before Catra's troops destroyed it- and own for personal enjoyment. Robyn continued on, climbing up a ladder into another, much smaller deck above. Looking down below, Robyn raised a brow, giving Catra one of her usual smirks, raising her tiny tail. 

"One more deck, don't worry," she chortled, finishing her climb. Catra followed closely behind, clutching tightly to the wooden rungs as everything started to slide to the left Robyn crouched low, sliding her claws into the floor. As the ship steadied itself, Catra made it to the same deck Robyn was on and groaned at the thought of having to climb one more ladder. On this deck, there were a lot of controls centered around the glass ports, various workers were doing what they could to hold onto the desk that wrapped around the bridge and resume their work. Catra awkwardly stayed on all fours as she followed Robyn to the final ladder and quickly followed her up. In the last and upmost deck of the superstructure were the main controls, two scrawny Horde soldiers sat at the flight bridge, struggling to keep track of the various controls located here. Catra looked around with some curiosity, doing her best to avoid staring out the ports and into the swirling sea and ranging storm that encompassed the ship in every direction. Robyn stepped behind the Horde soldiers, placing her hands on their shoulders. 

"Cockswain Harvey," Robyn addressed, dipping her head respectfully to the soldier on her left. The soldier was a striking lizard despite his small stature. A heavy, silver mohawk fell down long the top of his head and neck, much like a horse's mane. To the right was an even smaller, pasty human with light red-hair and horribly burned skin. Catra crinkled her nose as she saw the woman's flaking red skin, disgusted by how horrible the sunburn was. "What's going on?" Her voice was confident, strong, and commanding, a smile crept up onto her face. Catra blushed ever so slightly at the magicat, taking on a new and impressive leadership role rather than the troubled outcast Catra took her to be. She stood quietly with her back up against one of the portholes, the cool glass chilling her spine. 

"Well, Captain, our weather-vane readings have been off the charts," Harvey starts, pointing to a screen for Robyn to look at. Catra cocks her head to the side, attempting to get a closer look. "We can't tell which direction the wind is coming from, which is why we think this storm is as bad as it is. It's just... spinning." His voice was full of concern and all Robyn did was watch and nod before turning to the female soldier and raising a brow.

"Our radar readings have also been obscured by the weather. This isn't anything I've ever seen before," she explained, pointing to different screens for Robyn. Robyn nodded in understanding, placing a hand on her shoulder as she leaned over her to get a better look. The soldier gritted her teeth and stifled back a yipe. Catra snorted, finding it amusing how Robyn wasn't even aware she was touching against the soldier's sunburn. Suddenly, the ship took a sudden turn, sending everything spinning. The soldiers at the controls gripped onto whatever they could to steady themselves but their efforts were fruitless. The rolling chairs flew out from underneath them and began to slide around the room. The soldiers hit the grounds with a heavy thud, Robyn toppling after them. Catra lost her own balance and quickly found herself crashing to the floor. She unsheathed her claws, scrambling to stick them into whatever she could to keep herself from being thrown around as violently as the others. 

"C-Cockswain Zingiber-"Robyn growled, her voice deep and shrill as one of the chairs swung around and slammed into her. She let out a loud, ear-piercing caterwaul as it hit her. Catra looked around where she was crouched, the ship only spinning faster and faster with each passing second. The red-haired soldier was passed out, her body flopping around the room. Her face was beginning to bleed profusely from her mouth, leaving streaks of deep red blood across the floor. Catra struggled to make out what was going on around her. One of the chairs got caught on the edge of the hatch and fell down to the bridge below. Catra tried to focus her attention on Robyn, her claws unlatching from the floors and her limp body fell into the commotion, a deep dash along her temple. 

"Robyn!" Catra yowled as she heard the sound of Harvey's thick claws slamming into the metal sides of the control system, grounding him in place. The storm outside showed no sigh of letting up anytime soon. She tucked her head in between her arms as best as she could to protect herself from from the flopping bodies or the remaining chair that was still within the room. 

Catra woke up confused and her body aching. Her right eye hurt and felt tender to the touch, a stabbing pain shot through her face any time she blinked. Her eyelid was so swollen it obscured her vision. Forcing herself to sit up, she looked around the room. It was small and confined, aqua colored walls against a shiny, silvery polished floor. Three walls surrounded her on either side, the fourth was was bars with a small slot in the center with just enough room for arms to fit through. Her stomach tightened as she realized that this wasn't her cabin. She was in a prison. Tucked in the corner was a cot with freshly folded navy blue blankets against a golden box frame. Opposite to the cot was a toilet and sink, gold in color. Catra stiffened as it dawned on her that others could see her relieve herself. With what little strength she had left, Catra crawled to the golden bars that locked her in, grabbing onto them with shaking hands. Across from her was Robyn, laid out on her back on the floor in her own cage. She was able to make out the shell-like decor that lined the walls, glistening with gold and turquoise accents. 

"I'm in..."

"Salineas." A young woman's voice snapped, heavy footsteps making their way down the corridor. To her right, Princess Mermista appeared, armed with her own trident and a guard on either side, ready to take any attackers out if prompted. Catra felt her throat tighten and her breathing go shallow as she Princess walked up to her cell. Mermista looked down upon her, her hand on her him and the most vile scowl she had ever seen across someone's face. "You're in Salineas Prison. And if you ask me, after what you had done, this place is too good for you." Her voice was cold as ice, the look in her eyes unforgiving. Catra's hackles raised as she felt her heart begin to race, pounding quickly in her chest. How did she end up here? How had Robyn's mission gone so wrong? Catra frowned, adverting her gaze away from Mermista's cold stare. She didn't know how to respond. Mermista crossed her arms over her chest and lifted her head, continuing to further demonstrate who was in charge. 

"But, that's not a problem. You're only here temporarily, so don't get too comfortable. You'll be shipped off to Bright Moon tonight to be tried tomorrow." 

Mermista smirked and shook her head. Catra forced herself to look the sea princess in the eyes, feeling how proud Mermista was to have Catra in her hands now. She could also feel her fate now awaiting her. She had never heard of a public execution outside of the Horde being performed before. Would that be what was awaiting her? Maybe they would send her to Beast Island where she would await a fate worse than death. Either way, it didn't matter. Mermista turned her heels and walked away, laughing with her guards about something that Catra didn't care about. 

All she had wanted to do was escape from her own misery and her own pain. She wanted to escape from the memories that haunted her the last few weeks every day and night. Her hands slid down from the bars and she fell forward, her eyes watering as tears started to form and slowly drip down over her cheeks. Her crying was silent, intimate to only her. Catra closed her eyes and felt her own mind begin to wander, contemplating the future. Her trial was sure to be trial, to serve justice to the lives she was responsible for ending. The lives she killed recklessly. Her own abuser would still get off Scott-free and all she had was hope that Karma existed, never facing punishment for her own traumatizing crimes. Would anyone even care? Who would watch such a thing? Surely all of the Princesses would want to attend, right? After all, this was a big deal. 

All of the princesses...

Catra swallowed, trying to remove the choking feeling in her throat. Her body shook. 

_Adora... Promise me... Promise me that no matter what happens to me, you won't watch... ___

__Once again, Catra's world faded to black._ _


	8. Overload

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Content Warning: Graphic depictions of a nightmare containing rape are toward the end of this chapter. The section will be marked with a (!!!) at the beginning and end because I can't figure out how to fuck to use italics. But that's the entire nightmare section anyway. Slight mentions of self-harm and suicidal idealization are also within this chapter. This is not marked but occurs shortly after and is small enough to where I do not feel a warning is needed.

A sudden explosion took Catra by surprise, her eyelids flying open with fear. A loud gasp came from her mouth as her head jerked back, her face still pulsating from being swollen. Her cheek felt cold and numb from being on the tile of the Salineas prison cell. Her hands clutched onto the golden bars in front of her as she pressed the uninjured side of her face against them, striving to see what was occurring either end of the long corridor. Across from her, Robyn was awaking up in her own bed, bandages wrapped around the various cuts on her face. The bobcat sat straight up, her ears high and erect on her head. Catra took notice of a rather large split in one of the outer edges of her ear as Robyn redid the bloody gauze bandage that she had wrapped around it. As another explosion went off, this time much closer, Catra felt the ground shake beneath her body as she continued to sit on the floor. A troop of four Salineas guards ran in from the right-hand side, tridents in their hands. Catra watched them run by, panic surging through her as she was still contained and unsure of what awaited her. Another guard quickly followed behind, keeping a generous amount of distance between themselves and the four-guard group before. One thing that stuck out to Catra was that this guard in particular kept a black and grey mask donned over their face, only small blue eyes shone from underneath. The guard side-stepped over to Robyn's cell and quickly unlocked it. Before the guard could dash off, Robyn grabbed them by the shoulder and pointed over to Catra's cell.

"Her, too." She snapped. The guard's head jerked back in shock at Robyn's request. They looked over at Catra once, then at Robyn, then dashed over to unlock her own cell.

"If you go upstairs, make a right and follow that hallway down until you reach the end. From there, take a left and then another right. You'll see a flight of stairs. Take those down. There you can find our extra sets of armor. Around that area, you should also be able to reach the dock where your ship is stationed, Robyn. Salineas seized the weapons on board as well as any personal belongings that they could," the guard explained in a rush as they bent down to grab Catra by the nape of her shirt and her wrist, pulling her up and onto her feet. Robyn reached out to lend a helping hand in order to stabilize Catra. Her knees felt weak underneath the weight of her body. The guard turned to her, their blue eyes shimmering with determination. "The Horde knows your here, Catra. They're here after you. You two need to run. Your bags should be somewhere in one of the storage units on the docks. We haven't had the time to go through everything, so take what you can."

With sudden urgency, the guard fled from Robyn and Catra. Robyn slipped a muscular arm around Catra's ribs and tucked under her underarms, taking off as fast as she could manage. Catra gritted her teeth and cringed, her ears and flattening against her skull as the fur on her tail bristled. Robyn remain silent as they dashed through the corridor, ignoring the angry calls and cursing from locked up in-mates. Catra knew better than to ask at time like this what was going on and why they had been spared while those probably locked up for much lesser crimes were still caged. Catra did her best to push out the sounds of their voices as they reached the stairs and scrambled up it. Still weak, Robyn tripped and came crashing down on top of Catra, slamming down on her back and pinning her to the rough edges of the steps. Catra let out a hiss as she felt her ribs pound into the jagged surface.

 _That's going to bruise..._ She thought bitterly to herself as she shook Robyn off of her. Robyn struggled to get back up to her feet. Allowing her natural instincts to take over, Catra continued on on all fours, swishing her tail in front of Robyn to do the same. Robyn grunted as she pushed off of the steps, forcing herself onto all fours and followed behind Catra. Both of the women were able to put more force into each step as their legs pumped out from behind them, propelling them forward. Robyn grunted with each step, her voice growing louder and louder. Catra flicked her ears back, signalling her to try her best to keep it down to not alert anyone. Catra had no idea if there would be any guards around, but with Salineas under attack, Catra wasn't worried. Everyone would be too focused on defending their weakening kingdom to worry about a couple of prisoners getting loose, even if the prisoners were none other Catra and one of the most powerful weapons dealers in all of Etheria. As they reached the rooms the guard had told them about, Catra rampantly searched for her own bag, snagging whatever else she found to be useful in the process. Robyn went to scan over the various weapons Salineas had confiscated. Catra could sense the apprehension that Robyn was facing, how so much she worked for was now gone.

None the less, Robyn had her sights on something specific. Catra slipped two fully charged stun-batons into her knapsack, two of the retractable staffs Horde members generally used for combat training, in addition to various small packs of nuts and seeds she discovered while rummaging through others. Catra made her to snag plenty of matches this time, some salt, and string. Robyn came back over to Catra and handed her a couple of knives. Realizing that the bag she had wasn't big enough to carry everything, but also being Horde issued, Catra understood it wasn't ideal. With a grunt, Catra dumped the bag's contents onto the floor. The smell of old rotting lizards curled her nostrils and the sweet smell of death nearly made her hurl on cue. Robyn jumped at the sound, worried it was a guard. She padded over to Catra cautiously, looking over the contents.

"Ew, Catra... Are those... teeth?" She questioned, picking up one of the tiny white fragments. Catra shrugged, swiping it out of her hand and shuffling the others into a different bag she took from the stash.

"Yes, they are," she replied cooly, making sure they were tucked inside of a pocket that lined the inside of the bag. "I thought they were fascinating. Figured if I was going to roam the Crimson Waste for all of Eternity, I might as well look like some kind of savage," she teased, trying to bring some humor into the grim situation they were stuck in. Robyn simply raised a brow and shoot her head, laughing to herself quietly. "Would you want to fight someone with a bunch of teeth hanging around their neck? If the badassery doesn't freak you out, the nature and grossness of them will."

"Catra..." Robyn started, darting past her to continue looking for something specific. "You're one strange cat. You could probably sell some of those for good money to oddity collectors. Maybe scientists? " She added awkwardly, starting to shift though the content that rested on the other side of the room. "Please tell me that you'll get rid of them."

Catra cocked her head back and laughed, holding a large dagger-like canine in between her thumb and index. "No promises, Pussycat. Maybe I'll pick up a few bones while we are out and at it." Catra finished getting the new knapsack packed and started to follow Robyn around, still unsure of what the bobcat was looking for. She saw Robyn fluff out her fur in shiver, obviously creeped out from Catra's mannerisms. A part of Catra felt like she was keeping the memories of the lost travelers alive by carrying them with her, rather than being covered in sand and dust to never be even thought of again. She couldn't deny it was weird, but she had seen much stranger collections in the Horde.

"Ah ha!" Robyn exclaimed, pulling out a golden quiver with a couple dozen of carefully handcrafted arrows tied up in a bundle inside. Along with it was a beautifully handcrafted bow, made to some sort of intended perfection. Catra's pupils dilated as they scanned over the delicate etching in the gold-plated wood. Robyn smiled, running her paws over all of the engravings, marveling at the work. "I made this bow and these arrows shortly before I left off on my excursion where I met you," she then explained, quickly untying the arrows before slinging the quiver over her back. Robyn then slipped the bow over her shoulder and gave Catra a curt nod. Catra understood what it was like to have a favorite weapon, but didn't quite see the appeal or Robyn's need to have this specific bow. That just didn't seem to enough for her. Catra's ears started to twitch sightly as they started to pick up the sounds of voices. She could see Robyn's ears having a similar- if mot more violent- reaction to the voices. She wondered if the tufted tips made whatever she heard even more magnified in her ears, but knew there was no time to ask.

"Rob, we need to go," Catra sneered, grabbing the older woman by the arm. Robyn yanked away with a low, gurgling growl.

__"Not until we find my mask!"_ _

Catra narrowed her eyes, pinning her ears back. _ _Mask? She had a mask? _You've _got _to be kidding me! You have a mask and you don't even wear it? If it's so important to you, then why don't you just wear it around like I do? It's not like it'll help you in anyway!_____ Catra thought angrily to herself as she started to quickly tear through the luggage that was piled up around in the room and ignore the constant shaking of her ears despite how annoying it was. The longer the two searched, the closer the voices became. By now, only a fourth of the luggage on the ship had been rummaged through with no sign of it anywhere. Catra noticed that Robyn would repeatedly look through a particular set of bags that she assumed belonged to her.

"There!" A muffled voice called, catching both of the magicat's heads. Catra let out a gasp as the familiar grey and green uniforms that Horde soldiers wore stood before them in the doorway, energized guns in hand. Catra had never seen such weapons before and realized that they must be new, one of Robyn's designs even. They were much more high-tech than the basic ray gun she had used to demolish Seaworthy. Robyn bared her teeth and growled as one of the two soldiers in the door let off various green sparks toward the felines. Ears ringing, Catra jumped for it, launching herself toward one of the nearby walls and bounding off of it as quick flashes of bright green light trailed just barely behind her. There wasn't much for her to do besides run it circles it felt. Run in circles and hide behind suitcases and bags. Before she knew it, the sound of electricity crackling split through the air and both soldiers were on the ground, twitching and incapacitated. Looking over, Catra noticed the shiny golden bow was cocked in Robyn's hand, another arrow pressed against its frame.

"Let's go. We're out of time," Robyn sighed, slinging the bow over her shoulder and dashing toward the door. Catra sprang onto all fours, nearly crashing into Robyn's backside as the bobcat paused to remove her arrows from out of the soldiers necks- the only place where their armor was weak- and tossed them back into her quiver. Robyn took off once again, dashing out through the halls the way in which they came. Catra's body screamed at her in pain to stop, but the adrenaline rush that flowed through her kept her going. She almost felt as if she had superhuman strength as she pushed forward, her claws scraping against the once nicely-polished floors. Catra's breathing grew heavy as they ran through the halls. She pushed herself a little extra harder to try and get a hand on Robyn, accidentally yanking on her bobbed tail. "What the FUCK!?" Robyn screamed with a bloodcurdling shriek as she snapped her head back around.

"The port is this way," Catra panted, nodding in the direction of the port with her head as she struggled to keep balance and struggled to prevent herself from rear-ending into Robyn's backside. Robyn's head quickly turned back in the way they were going, her cheek fluff moving only seconds behind. In a flash, the bobcat turned heel and started to make a mad dash toward the port. Catra's hands and feet slipped along the smooth surface as she started to run again, unable to keep up. Robyn was already flying down another set of stairs by the time Catra caught sight of her again. She was so winded she new she would pass out in any second if she didn't stop to breathe. "Robyn!" She tried to scream, falling down the stairs the second one of her hands missed a step. Catra tumbled all the way down to the next floor, each hard, heavy edge hitting her along the way. The taste of blood filled her mouth as she realized she bit her tongue as she felt her body hit the floor with a loud thuds!

Robyn turned around and groaned, forcing herself back to Catra and grabbing her by the nape of her neck with her claws, sinking them into her skin. As badly as it hurt, Catra was too exhausted to move or even care. Even death sounded like a fine option at this point. She wasn't even sure why she was still around, why she hadn't died yet. Certainly there was no point in her even staying alive. She had no purpose now that she had left the Horde, no place in the Rebellion. Robyn still wasn't much more than a stranger to her, yet here she was risking her own life for Catra. Catra felt her body being tossed over one of Robyn's broad shoulders as the magicat grunted, staying low to the ground as she climbed aboard her old, decimated ship. Catra watched Robyn's feet step aboard the Ulysses and sink her claws into the soaked, salty deck. The wood was still damp from what it looked like, but it didn't matter. Something sparked through Catra, much like the electrical pulses world went black.

Blinking awake, Catra's head was pounding and the sound of a crackling fire tickled the inside of her ears funny. She noticed she was soaked and stuck somewhere in the kingdom of Salineas. She had never once been in any of its forests, but it seemed to be a bit more tame than the Whispering Woods or literally any of the Brightmoon forests for that matter. She didn't know what she was wet, but she was shivering and scooted herself closer to the fire in front of her. Not too far off was Robyn, her own black hair heavy with wetness and curled up in a small ball, snoring softly. Looking around, she noticed that the bobcat had made a very small camp for the both of them for the night. Catra licked her chops, realizing how dry her mouth was. Wincing as she moved, Catra crawled toward the bag she had packed earlier and pulled out one of the couple of flasks tucked inside. She didn't know what was in it and didn't care. Popping the top off, she tossed her head back and pressed the metallic nozzle to her lips. A strong bitter taste filled her mouth and she swallowed, something warm hitting her stomach instantly. She chugged the disgusting liquid down in a feeble attempt to quench her thirst. Whatever it was, it didn't settle well and her stomach churned, searing in pain. Catra toppled over, her arms wrapped tightly around her gut as she hissed profanities to herself.

Before long, something heavy had hit her and she struggled to keep her eyes open. She drifted in and out of consciousness before sleep over came her, pulling her out of her confused state.

__________**(!!!)** __________

Great, now where am I? ___________Catra thought to herself, confused as her eyes flickered around the room. She recognized the green-grey walls of the Horde, the navy blue blanket of Adora's old bed. Catra pulled the blanket to her nose and sniffed, trying to capture whatever smell of Adora was left behind. It was blank. It didn't even smell like herself and she pouted, wrapping it around her shoulders and neck regardless for some kind of comfort.___________

___________"Why did you do it, Catra?" A familiar feminine voice demanded from behind her. Catra turned her head around, feeling something heavy spike in her stomach. All she saw were more bunks, perfectly made and completely empty. Catra felt a lump form in her throat and she attempted to swallow it down, coughing violently instead._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

___________"Adora?" She called, getting up to her feet. She couldn't see her anywhere._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

___________"Why Catra? What's wrong with you? " Adora demanded again, this time her voice more stern than the last. Catra winced, clenching her teeth tightly and flattening her black ears against her skull. She turned on her heel quickly, the barracks now extending out forever in either direction. Her pupils constricted into fine, thin slits and her heart began to race. "Tell me, Catra! Why did you do it? Are you that sick in the head? Do you like being the bad guy?"_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

___________Something hit her along the cheek and she fell down to her knees, landing in a shallow pool of clear water. Her hands started to sink in the softest, whitest sand she had ever seen. Catra tried to pull them out and get off of her knees, but the sand kept pulling her in the harder she tried. The crystal clear water was now reaching her chest. In a panic, Catra tossed her head up, seeing the shore just a few paces out of reach. Her heart sunk as it occurred to her that she was going to drown._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

Maybe I deserve this...

_____________"How many times do I need to ask you? You liked killing those people, didn't you? Hearing their screams? Their cries for mercy?" Adora growled, still nowhere to be found. Catra felt tears starting to form in her eyes and screwing up her vision._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

_____________"No! I didn't! Please, Adora, where are you?" She cried, tossing her head back to try and find the girl. The water that had stretched out forever behind her quickly transformed into a land mass where cozy, sea-side villas and stores were erected and bustling about happily. Catra's heart lurched forward in her chest and the feeling of hands wrapped around her chin and throat forced her to stare. She blinked and an entire fleet of Horde ships appeared in front of her in a flash. Within moments, the ships had faded, but not before what Catra made out to be Seaworthy went up in flames. Catra closed her eyes and tried to shake Adora's invisible hands free. Her grip only grew tighter and something pulled her eyelids open, forcing her to watch Seaworthy begin to go up in smoke and flame. A loud echoing sound started to bellow within her ears and she screamed, falling back from where she had been crawling in the water. Her hands had only managed to feel free for a second before she landed square on her back in the water. It was shallower that it had been only moments ago and all of Seaworthy had circled around her pool of water. With an unknown force holding her eyelids open, she had nowhere else to look besides at the horrific destruction laid out in front of her. "No! Adora, I'm begging you! I feel horrible for what I did to Seaworthy!"_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

_____________Catra tried to sit up but the sand her back was against pooled over and tightened against her wrists and ankles. She started to hyperventilate, unable to move no matter how hard she tried. The water she sat in quickly turned warm and thick, clouding over a bright red. Adora was positioned at either leg and either arm, her face dark and gone, hidden by a shadow as she forced Catra down. Catra continued to try to pull away from Adora's grasp to no avail. She wasn't going to go anywhere no matter how hard she tried. Close to giving up, Catra laid her head back down and closed her eyes, feeling the water-turned-blood lap at her sides and mane. She took a deep breath in and when she re-opened them, she found herself back in the main hull of the Horde, the blood still tugging at her skin._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

_____________"You dirty, disgusting creature..." Adora sneered. There was only one of her now, towering over Catra and gripping her by the jaw with a bloody hand. Catra shivered under Adora's touch as the blonde slowly lifted her head toward her. She still couldn't see the bright-blue of her eyes and was instead met with grey, hallowed out shells. She squirmed, trying to pull away from this... this monstrosity. Adora laughed, her chest and shoulders shaking. "Oh, silly kitten. Isn't this what you wanted?" She sneered, pressing her mouth into Catra's. Catra wanted to scream but was instead finding herself being suffocated under Adora's draining kiss. Her hands still wrapped around her neck and throat, preventing her from fleeing. Catra's heart started to pump feverishly inside of her chest, going so fast she was worried it would burst. The longer Adora kissed her, the more she could feel her energy being sucked out of her body. Catra looked around from where she was with nothing but her eyes, realizing all of the Horde was now laid out around her watching. Their lips were moving but no sounds came out. With whatever effort she had left in her, Catra shook Adora way, the blonde screaming out in protest. The blood that surrounded her was slowly rising around her and Catra noticed that she was naked. She struggled against the restraints, shaking the ground she was strapped down to violently. The blood rose faster, almost level with her eyes._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

_____________"You're nothing but a filthy disgrace, Catra. You know that, right?" Snapped Adora angrily. Her short fingernails started to dig deeply into Catra's throat and she struggled to breathe in her grasp. Catra began coughing, black sludge seeping out of the corner of her mouth. The Horde around her only cheered harder. They were still as silent as if they weren't even there, but by the way they tossed their hands around in the air and jumped up and down, she knew that they liked what they were seeing. "You're a disgrace to the Horde, and most of all, to me." Adora's words stung her ears and made her skin prickle. The black sludge that was dripping down onto her chin was beginning to trail along on her bare chest directly in between both of her breasts which looked so small compared to Adora's. Catra blinked, unable to believe her eyes as now Adora was just as bare as she was. Her skin looked beautiful, even with the blood lapping at her body. Her golden blonde hair seemed to sparkle and glisten despite there being no bright light. Catra felt weak and oddly aroused by the entire situation. She also felt small, humiliated and weak. She closed her eyes and turned her head, feeling her cheeks blushing hot from seeing Adora's unclothed body._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

_____________The black sludge soon replaced the tears she was softly crying and felt heavier against her skin, burning it directly like a hot iron. Catra couldn't feel the pain, but she knew it was there and she knew it was singeing her skin unforgivably. Adora's hand around her throat began to squeeze even harder, causing her to choke and cough out more sludge. Her eye lids shot open. "You should be ashamed of yourself, Catra." Adora hissed, her breath hot in Catra's ears. A free hand started to trail down between her breasts and to her core. Catra tried to scream out, but failed. The black sludge instead only choked her even more. It felt as if her body were betraying her, her insides still screaming for Adora although she knew in her own mind that this wasn't Adora. She didn't know what this was, but it wasn't the girl she fell in love with and slept with night after night. This wasn't the girl she tore herself up over. Catra couldn't stand it anymore, she was once again stuck and helpless, fake-Adora's hand slipping inside of her violently, stretching her out. She knew it was supposed to hurt but she couldn't feel the pain. "Can you feel how wet you are, Catra? Can you feel yourself disgracing yourself for me? Lusting after me like-"_____________

**_____________(!!! End)_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ **

"Catra!" A raspy voice screamed, Catra's eyelids flying open and she gasped, sucking in a deep breath of cool air. The air stung her lungs completely and made her feel wide awake. Something soft and warm was wrapped up around her body, holding her tight and gently shaking her. "Catra..." The voice said again, this time a lot softer. Robyn's arms squeezed her close to her chest and Catra felt frozen in place. She didn't want the arms around her, she didn't want to be held, she didn't want to be in the forest and she didn't even want to be alive anymore. She began to cry, Robyn still holding her. She didn't try to escape, but she did block out whatever nonsense was spilling out of the bobcat's mouth. She couldn't do this anymore. Something off in the distance moved, though she couldn't tell what it was beyond it being a nearly pitch-black blob. Catra stiffened, Robyn still fussing over her. In a fit of panic, Catra unsheathed her claws and started to claw Robyn, scrabbling to get away.

"Get off of me! Get off!" She screeched, her throat sore and bloody. She felt her claws sink into Robyn's soft flesh as she squirmed in her strong grasp. Robyn yowled out in pain and Catra just didn't care. She fell directly into the grassy world that surrounded the both of them with a grunt. She tried to pull herself together but felt the grass getting caught in her nails, making the entire ordeal much harder than it needed to be. Cara couldn't handle it anymore. She gave up, curling into a tight ball and began to sob. "Please, just kill me.... please..." She begged.

Robyn ignored her bleeding arms, her golden eyes focused softly on Catra as she cried. "Please! Kill me, you idiot!" She screamed, her body trembling in the grass. Robyn hesitated, unsure of what to do. She didn't want to just sit there and stare at Catra, but she sure as hell wasn't about to kill her. She had never seen someone this hopeless before, this broken. Soon, Robyn caught sight of a hint of red trickling out from somewhere in Catra's curled up mess.

 _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _Shit, she's hurting herself..._______________ Robyn started to panic despite being exhausted. Catra needed her somehow, but she wasn't sure what to do or how to help. She couldn't just leave her there suffering. She would only continue hurting herself or potentially find a way to finish herself off. Robyn bit down on her lip and looked around, unsure of what to do. With a sigh, she did the only thing she could think of struggled against Catra, grabbing a hold of her wrists and kneeling down on either one of her thighs. She forced Catra's arms to her side, pinning her down. Robyn could see the deep gashes Catra had inflicted upon herself, hot, sticky blood trailing out of them. She dipped her head and sighed, feeling Catra squirm under her. Catra only struggled against her even harder, trying to move her head to bite. Robyn swished her tail uncomfortably behind her and frowned. Eventually, Catra gave up and went limp.

"Robyn, please. I don't have any reason to be here anymore. I'm literally better off dead," Catra sobbed, her colored eyes bloodshot. "I'm only holding you back. Everyone wants me dead and I don't have a purpose in the entire universe anymore. I've done horrible things and -" Catra was quickly cut off as Robyn pressed her lips against Catra's, kissing her. Catra froze for a second before jerking her head away, nipping and biting at her face violently. As her sharp fangs made contact with Robyn's skin, the bobcat pulled her face back, realizing just how stupid of an idea that was. Catra winced and continued to sob. Robyn let out a hefty sigh, afraid to loosen her grip.

"Catra, I'll let go of you as long as you promise not to hurtself. If I have to shock you again, I will-"

 _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _"________________ That was you?" She screamed, spitting in Robyn's face. Robyn jerked her head back, scowling as Catra's saliva sprayed across her cheeks.

"Yes, I-"

"Do you have any idea how that effected me? What it did? You-"

Robyn slammed the top of her skull against the side of Catra's face and bit down on her neck, trying to reach the nape as best as she could. Catra's body softly twitched and she could tell that she hit the nerve enough to keep her steady.

"I'll use one of the stun-batons if I have to. I need you to calm down, Catra. I know that isn't exactly easy right now, but I will do so if it means keeping you safe. I need you to shut the fuck up and stop trying to hurt yourself," Robyn growled through her teeth. Catra attempted to nod her head and she left go of her bite. Catra turned her attention back to Robyn, pain still showing in her eyes. Robyn hung her head and sighed once again. "I don't like seeing you hurt. I don't know what's going on and I don't know how to handle it. I don't know how to handle emotions at all. Especially these kind. I'm not killing you and I'm not going to let you hurt yourself and that's final. You need sleep and so do I. I'll hogtie you if I have to," she huffed, letting up on Catra's limbs. Catra still laid there for a second, rubbing her neck from where Robyn had bit her. "We're heading to my own personal boat tomorrow morning. Neither of us have enough energy to make it there tonight. We're a good way out from Mermista's castle, but I need you to shut up so we don't attract any unwanted visitors. Neither of us have the energy to fight the off, either." Robyn explained, peeling herself away from Catra and falling down next to her in the grass.

Catra was still sobbing, still struggling to breathe beside her, but she wasn't trying to hurt herself anymore and she wasn't stuck in the nightmare Robyn had caught her in. She felt grateful she managed to wake up in time to get Catra awake, but that wasn't something she really wanted to have to do ever again. She inhaled deeply through her nose, held her breath, and exhaled through her mouth.

This girl needs some serious therapy....

Robyn turned her head to look at Catra who was attempting to steady her breath. She didn't move as she didn't want to cause Catra to freak out again. She felt terrible for pinning her down, for kissing her, and for scruffing her like she did, but like she said to Catra... she didn't know how to handle these kinds of feelings. It was always different whenever Robyn experienced them herself and it wasn't like the Horde had a decent mental crisis program- as they didn't have one at all- so all she could to was rely on her own instincts and shitty techniques she had seen in movies. She laid there in the grass, suddenly feeling the warmth and pressure of Catra's body pressing up against her, trying to slip under one of her arms. Robyn smiled weakly and let Catra in, feeling her hand clench onto her shirt and her nose nuzzling into the crook of her neck. Her body was still shaky and she could tell she was still not breathing normally just yet, but that was fine. Catra was getting herself to relax and that was all that mattered. She didn't hug her and just let the younger woman come to her. She let Catra set the pace and take whatever it was that she needed from Robyn. Although a bit risky, she placed a small kiss on Catra's forehead, breathing in her scent through her nose. She slightly opened her mouth to allow a bit of her sweet, almost musky smell to bathe over the scent glads in the roof of her mouth.

"I... I can try to explain what happened another time... Right now, I just..." Catra's voice started to quaver again.

"Shhh- It's okay, Catra. I'm in no rush. Just try to sleep, okay?" Robyn chuckled softly, gently running her hand through Catra's thick hair. Catra slowly nodded, still cuddled up into Robyn. The bobcat rested her chin on Catra's head, carefully removing her mask so it wasn't digging into her side anymore and letting out a low, rumbling purr to try and comfort her. Catra's breathing gradually eased into a slow, steady rhythm as she managed to fall back to sleep. Robyn took a deep breath in and sighed. This day had been chaotic and she was beyond exhausted at this point. She laid there, staring up at the sky, seeing the purple expanse cast out above, tree leaves swaying back and forth and blotching out parts of it. The fire was still going strong enough to last a few hours, but would be easy enougb to smother out by morning. There had been a lot of different things she had done, daring and dangerous, but none had quite been like this. It almost amazed her how much she liked Catra, but there was a part of her that made her see a bit of herself in the young cat. She kissed her again gently.

___________________It'll be alright, Robyn. It will work itself out. It always does. You just need to be patient. Just keep her safe._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _


End file.
